Devices having an integrated computational element and a proximal interferent monitor and methods for determining a characteristic of a sample therewith

A device comprising:

• a sample detection unit comprising a first integrated computational element and a detector, the first integrated computational element being configured to analyze for a characteristic of interest in a sample based upon the dot product of a regression vector of the characteristic being analyzed, and the detector being positioned to receive electromagnetic radiation that has optically interacted with the first integrated computational element and produce a sample signal associated with the received electromagnetic radiation;
• an interferent monitor located proximal to the sample detection unit, the interferent monitor comprising a second integrated computational element and being configured to produce an interferent signal associated with an interferent substance or an interferent condition;
• an optional data storage unit that is operable to record the sample signal and the interferent signal as a function of time;
• and
• a signal processing unit that is operable to convert the interferent signal into an interferent input form suitable for being computationally combined with the sample signal, the signal processing unit being further operable to computationally combine the sample signal and the interferent input form to determine the characteristic of interest.

A method comprising:

• providing electromagnetic radiation that has optically interacted with or that has been emitted by a sample;
• providing a sample detection unit comprising a first integrated computational element and a detector, the first integrated computational element being configured to analyze for a characteristic of interest in the sample based upon the dot product of a regression vector of the characteristic being analyzed, and the detector being positioned to receive electromagnetic radiation that has optically interacted with the first integrated computational element;
• optically interacting electromagnetic radiation with the first integrated computational element;
• detecting the electromagnetic radiation that has optically interacted with the first integrated computational element, thereby producing a sample signal associated therewith;
• monitoring an interferent substance using an interferent monitor and producing an interferent signal associated therewith;
• converting the interferent signal into an interferent input form suitable for being computationally combined with the sample signal;
• computationally combining the sample signal and the interferent input form so as to produce a combined signal;
• and
• correlating the combined signal to a characteristic of the sample in real-time or near real-time.