ქიმიის ტერმინთა განმარტებითი ლექსიკონი

True quantity value for a quantity of a component present in a material for which the probability of
falsely claiming the absence of the component is b, given a probability a of falsely claiming its
presence based on an established criterion for detection.

Note 1: The limit of detection is usually considered to be a performance characteristic of a
measurement procedure performed in a particular laboratory.

Note 2: The quantity is usually a mass fraction or a concentration but can also be for example, a
mass or amount of substance.

Note 3: The established criterion for detection can be, for example, a critical value which leads to a
declaration that the component is present.

Note 4: IUPAC recommends default values for a and b equal to 0.05. This corresponds to requiring a
level of confidence (see coverage probability Note 2) of 95 % for a statistical test for non-zero true
value of the quantity of the component, and to a statistical power of 95 % for that test applied to a
material containing the component at the limit of detection.

Note 5: The limit of detection is not a criterion for detection but indicates the true value of a
quantity of the component in a material that can be detected reliably, given a separate criterion (for
example critical value) for declaring the component present.

Note 6: If the limit of detection is estimated as a multiple of the standard deviation of measured
quantity values of a blank material (or one spiked with a small aliquot of the component) measured
under repeatability conditions of measurement, it is important to document the multiplication factor
applied so that different values stated for limits of detection can be compared

Note 7: In some European legislations ‘detection capability’ (denoted as CCb) is defined as „the
smallest content of the substance that may be detected, identified and/or quantified in a sample
with an error probability of b“.

Note 8: The use of the term „sensitivity“ for limit of detection is erroneous as it refers to the slope of
the calibration curve.