In this paper, I present construction details of a spectrophotometric assay operating in visual and ultraviolet wavelengths at a very low cost. The equipment is intended to be used by first or second-year undergraduate students in health sciences during practical activities of methods in analytical chemistry, physical chemistry or biophysics. The experimental learning of fundamental spectrophotometric techniques and the quantitative determination of the Lambert-Beer law, which cannot be done with commercial UV spectrophotometers, is easily attained with the apparatus. Experimental examples in biophysics teaching labs are briefly discussed.
experimental resources; teaching; Lambert-Beer law; biophysics; health sciences
