The field of infrared imaging for analytical chemical analysis has developed over the last few years into a technique that has clearly demonstrated its utility in a variety of applications(l-6). This imaging system is based upon the coupling of an infrared array detector to an infrared spectrometer and microscope, where the use of an array detector allows both spatial and spectral information to be generated simultaneously. Because of the high spatial content and data acquisition speed, researchers have been able to apply this technique to samples and experiments where traditional infrared microscopy has not proven successful.

Previously, in order to obtain an infrared image, the researcher was required to undertake a step and collect mapping experiment. In the mapping experiment, an aperture is set to obtain the desired spatial resolution at the sample. If high spatial resolution is required, most of the energy is discarded and long data collection times are needed to obtain a reasonable signal-to-noise