Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy (LIPS) as an efficient method for elemental analysis of environmental samples

Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy (LIPS) has proved to be a powerful laser-based analytical technique due to its simplicity and versatility. Practically any kind of sample can be analysed with no or minor preparation. Here a LIPS apparatus is presented, consisting of a Nd:YAG laser beam focused on the sample surface, a XY translator as the sample holder, a UV fibre cable used to collect the plasma emission and to transfer it to a spectrometer equipped with a gated optical multi-channel analyser (OMA III system). This system allows both spatially and temporally resolved spectra to be recorded. A large number of elements encountered in environmental samples have been identified in the 250 – 700 nm region: the samples were either in the form of a mixture of their oxides or encapsulated in glass matrices. The quality of the spectra in dependence on the various experimental parameters has been studied with the purpose to use these samples as references for elemental qualitative and quantitative determination of natural samples