AvaLIBS Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy System

AvaLIBS Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy System

The LIBS technique, which is a form of atomic emission spectroscopy, uses a pulsed laser to produce material ablation and plasma formation in a single step process. The light emitted by the luminous plasma is spectrally and temporally resolved to yield information on the elemental composition of the sample. The LIBS technique can be traced back to 1962 when it was first demonstrated using a pulsed ruby maser. In the 1980’s, Leon Radziemski, David Cremers and co-workers at Los Alamos National Laboratory (New Mexico, USA), pionered the development of the technique for “real-world” applications and it was from this group that the acronym LIBS first appeared. The LIBS technique has ppm to ppb detection limits, depending on the element analyzed. Furthermore, the sample does not need to be prepared (by polishing, dissolution, etc), and various foms of material may be analyzed by LIBS. Avantes new and improved AvaLIBS system is a transportable LIBS system based on a Big Sky Ultra CFR Nd:YAG laser (50 mJ). The system consists of a Pelicase™ in which is located the main consol containing up to six spectrometers. The laser power supply is external to the Pelicase™ unit and connects to the main consol via detachable leads. The LIBS Head, which connects to the main consol via a flexible umbilical (3 meters in length), may be used in “open beam” mode when suitable laboratory facilities are available. Alternatively, the LIBS Head may be attached to a sample chamber to provide full containment of the laser radiation (ie. laser-safe operation). The main consol is semi-permanently installed inside the Pelicase™. The LIBS Head and umbilical fit inside the Pelicase™ for storage and transport.

Operating software

The AvaSoft software controls the exact timing between the laser pulse and the start of the integration time. The timing is controlled by the laser or external pulse generator and synchronized with the AvaSpec spectrometer by running the spectrometer in external trigger mode. In this mode, the spectrometer receives a TTL-input signal from the laser, or simultaneously with the laser. The integration time delay is synchronized with this input signal. The AvaSoft software allows averaging, setting of integration time delay and integration time. The saved data can be imported directly into the Plasus analytical software package.

Automatic peak finding Search algorithms for peak finding in the spectra.
Line identification Identification of atoms, molecules and their ions using the included database.
Data evaluation Data smoothing, integral, scaling, peak value, calibration, arithmetic of spectra (+,-, * ,/).
Comparison of data Several spectra - even with different file formats – can be overlaid and compared.
Selection for database search Periodic table for atoms and ions, wavelength and intensity range.
Data export Data export to ASCII, Binary and Excel(CSV) format, graphic export to BMP, WMF and WPG format.