Laser ablation ICP MS at the Charles University
The PQ3 instrument is coupled to a NewWave UP 213 laser microprobe.
Front view of the laser ablation system.
Laser ablation
Laser ablation allows direct sampling of solid materials (e.g. minerals, metal alloys or pressed powder pellets) without the need to dissolve the samples in mineral acids. We use a 213 nm Q-switched NdYAG NewWave Microprobe laser. The laser beam (up to 2.5 mJ/pulse) is directed through a series of apertures and microscope optics and focused onto the sample surface. The sample is placed in a quartz glass cell mounted on a computer-driven motorized stage. The size of a single laser pit can vary from ca 4 microns up to ca 110 microns in diameter. Different ablation patterns such as continuous line or raster are also possible. The ablated material from the cell is flushed into the ICP by a stream of He or Ar gas.
Laser ablation ICP MS at the Charles University
The PQ3 instrument is coupled to a NewWave UP 213 laser microprobe.
Front view of the laser ablation system.
Laser sampling is used for a variety of trace element and isotope ratio measurements of geological and material science samples. Detection limits vary with sample matrix and the analysed elements from several ppb up to hundreds of ppm. Precision of isotope ratio measurements by laser ablation can be as low as 0.3 - 0.5 %, subject to the isotopic abundances, sample matrix and the amount of ablated material.
Plasma forming above a NIST glass standard where the laser beam hits the sample surface. Ablation at 10 Hz repetition rate in He gas.