Optogalvanic spectroscopy with microplasma sources – Current status and development towards lab on a chip

Miniaturized optogalvanic spectroscopy (OGS) shows excellent prospects of becoming ahighly sensitive method for gas analysis in micro total analysis systems. Here, a status reporton the current development of microwave induced microplasma sources for OGS is presented,together with the first comparison of the sensitivity of the method to conventional single-passabsorption spectroscopy. The studied microplasma sources are stripline split-ring resonators(SSRRs), with typical ring radii between 3.5 and 6 mm and operation frequencies around2.6 GHz. A linear response (R2 = 0.9999), and a stability of more than 100 s are demonstratedwhen using the microplasma source as an optogalvanic detector. Additionally, saturationeffects at laser powers higher than 100 mW are observed, and the temporal response of theplasma to periodic laser perturbation with repletion rates between 20 Hz and 200 Hz arestudied. Finally, the potential of integrating additional functionality with the detector isdiscussed, with the particular focus on a pressure sensor and a miniaturized combustor toallow for studies of solid samples.<p>Awaiting publication online.