An examination of the use of cross-correlation in quantitative analysis under conditions that isolated peaks are not obtained is reported. Examples are taken from infrared absorption spectroscopy. The properties of correlation that are relevant to this application are described. A comparison between cross-correlation and peak measurement is made with emphasis on the effects of sample background and instrument noise. Results are presented to show that correlation allows substantial improvement of performance when spectra with complex backgrounds are involved. It affords a significant improvement when noisy signals must be handled.
