Measurements of plasma temperature and electron density in laser-induced copper plasma by time-resolved spectroscopy of neutral atom and ion emissions

Plasma produced by a 355 nm pulsed Nd:YAG laser with a pulse duration of 6 ns focussed onto a copper solid sample in air at atmospheric pressure is studied spectroscopically. The temperature and electron density characterizing the plasma are measured by time-resolved spectroscopy of neutral atom and ion line emissions in the time window of 300–2000 ns. An echelle spectrograph coupled with a gated intensified charge coupled detector is used to record the plasma emissions. The temperature is obtained using the Boltzmann plot method and the electron density is determined using the Saha-Boltzmann equation method. Both parameters are studied as a function of delay time with respect to the onset of the laser pulse. The results are discussed. The time window where the plasma is optically thin and is also in local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE), necessary for the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) analysis of samples, is deduced from the temporal evolution of the intensity ratio of two Cu I lines. It is found to be 700–1000 ns.     

Detection of explosives with laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Our recent work on the detection of explosives by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is reviewed in this paper. We have studied the physical mechanism of laser-induced plasma of an organic explosive, TNT. The LIBS spectra of TNT under single-photon excitation are simulated using MATLAB. The variations of the atomic emission lines intensities of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen versus the plasma temperature are simulated too. We also investigate the time-resolved LIBS spectra of a common inorganic explosive, black powder, in two kinds of surrounding atmospheres, air and argon, and find that the maximum value of the O atomic emission line SBR of black powder occurs at a gate delay of 596 ns. Another focus of our work is on using chemometic methods such as principle component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) to distinguish the organic explosives from organic materials such as plastics. A PLS-DA model for classification is built. TNT and seven types of plastics are chosen as samples to test the model. The experimental results demonstrate that LIBS coupled with the chemometric techniques has the capacity to discriminate organic explosive from plastics.     

Calibration-free laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for quantitative elemental analysis of materials

The application of calibration-free laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (CF-LIBS) for quantitative analysis of materials, illustrated by CF-LIBS applied to a brass sample of known composition, is presented in this paper. The LIBS plasma is produced by a 355?nm pulsed Nd:YAG laser with a pulse duration of 6?ns focussed onto a brass sample in air at atmospheric pressure. The time-resolved atomic and ionic emission lines of Cu and Zn from the LIBS spectra recorded by an Echelle spectrograph coupled with a gated intensified charge coupled detector are used for the plasma characterization and the quantitative analysis of the sample. The time delay where the plasma is optically thin and is also in local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE), necessary for the elemental analysis of samples from the LIBS spectra, is deduced. An algorithm relating the experimentally measured spectral intensity values with the basic physics of the plasma is developed. Using the algorithm, the Zn and Cu concentrations in the brass sample are determined. The analytical results obtained from the CF-LIBS technique agree well with the certified values of the elements in the sample, with an accuracy error <1%.     

Evolution Characteristics of the Laser-Plasma Electron Temperature of Heavy Metal Cr in Liquid Matrix

Using the nanosecond single-pulse laser-induced breakdown-spectroscopy (LIBS) technique, we determine the LIBS spectrum of a mixed solution of soluble compounds as a sample. Based on the LIBS measurement system established and the best experimental parameters, we measure the plasma emission spectrum of some lines of the Cr element. When the ICCD gate delay is measured from 500 to 2500 ns every 500 ns, and the liquid sample flow rate is set in the range of 35 ml · min^?1?55 ml · min^?1 with an interval of 5 ml · min^?1, the partial emission line of the Cr element in the laser plasma is measured, and the Boltzmann oblique line is drawn after the integrated intensity obtained. We calculate the evolution characteristics of the laser-plasma electron temperature with experimental parameters. The results show that the electron temperature values obtained from the intensity of the spectral lines of different elements are consistent with each other, indicating the reliability of the experimental measurement data. The range of electron temperature is obtained from the intensity of the Cr element line in the plasma range from 4071.0 K to 5628.4 K. As the flow rate continues to increase, the plasma electron temperature also increases but gradually becomes gentle. We select Cr 357.87 nm as the analytical line in the experiment and measure the particle density ratios of the Cr element in the ground state at different ICCD gate delays and sample flow rates. It provides experimental parameter support for further LIBS quantitative analysis of trace heavy metal elements in a liquid matrix.

     

液相射流中中Al元素单双脉冲LIBS研究

为了综合比较单双脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱技术(LIBS)在液体中重金属元素的检测效果,利用自建的液相射流单-双脉冲LIBS技术装置,对AlCl₃水溶液中的Al元素LIBS特性进行测量和分析。实验中使用两台532 nm Nd∶YAG激光器作为激发光源,等离子体辐射信号通过光谱仪和ICCD进行采集。实验研究了单脉冲下Al(396.15 nm)发射谱线的谱线强度随激光能量、ICCD门延时、门宽之间的变化关系,获得了最优化实验参数激光能量为50 mJ,ICCD门延迟为1 200 ns,门宽为150 ns。在相同的实验条件下,实验考察了Al(369.15 nm)发射谱线的谱线强度随双脉冲之间的延时,激光总能量,ICCD门延时的变化关系,获得了最优化实验参数为两双脉冲之间的延时为1 000 ns,激光总能量为50 mJ,ICCD门延时为1 100 ns。单脉冲和双脉冲条件下获得重金属Al的LIBS检测限分别为26.79和10.80 ppm,双脉冲LIBS技术使元素检测限下降2倍多。实验结果表明双脉冲可以提升LIBS技术的探测灵敏度,为LIBS技术应用于水体中重金属快速检测提供了依据。     

Ni原子双飞秒脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱的信号增强研究

在大气环境下采用波长为800nm,脉宽为30fs的飞秒激光研究了Ni的双脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱,与单飞秒脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱相比,双飞秒脉冲在最优的双脉冲相对延时下,其信号强度增强接近10倍,实验研究了双脉冲相对延时在0-1300ps范围内不同延时对激光诱导击穿光谱信号强度增强因子的影响。整个相对延时区域可以分为三个阶段：在0-50ps区域内信号增强因子是一个持续增大的过程,在50ps左右,达到一个最大值;在50-300ps区域内,信号增强因子呈现出一个先下降后上升的过程;在300-1300ps,信号增强因子基本保持不变。     

Ni原子双飞秒脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱的信号增强研究

在大气环境下采用波长为800nm,脉宽为30fs的飞秒激光研究了Ni的双脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱,与单飞秒脉冲激光诱导击穿光谱相比,双飞秒脉冲在最优的双脉冲相对延时下,其信号强度增强接近10倍,实验研究了双脉冲相对延时在0-1300ps范围内不同延时对激光诱导击穿光谱信号强度增强因子的影响。整个相对延时区域可以分为三个阶段：在0-50ps区域内信号增强因子是一个持续增大的过程,在50ps左右,达到一个最大值;在50-300ps区域内,信号增强因子呈现出一个先下降后上升的过程;在300-1300ps,信号增强因子基本保持不变。     

The role of microwaves in the enhancement of laser-induced plasma emission

We studied experimentally the effect of microwaves (MWs) on the enhancement of plasma emission achieved by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). A laser plasma was generated on a calcium oxide pellet by a Nd:YAG laser (5 mJ, 532 nm, 8 ns) in reduced-pressure argon surrounding gas. A MW radiation (400 W) was injected into the laser plasma via a loop antenna placed immediately above the laser plasma to enhance the plasma emission. The results confirmed that when the electromagnetic field was introduced into the laser plasma region by the MWs, the lifetime of the plasma was extended from 50 to 500 µs, similar to the MW duration. Furthermore, the plasma temperature and electron density increased to approximately 10900 K and 1.5×10¹⁸ cm^-3, respectively and the size of the plasma emission was extended to 15 mm in diameter. As a result, the emission intensity of Ca lines obtained using LIBS with MWs was enhanced by approximately 200 times compared to the case of LIBS without MWs.     

土壤中铜元素的激光诱导击穿光谱测量分析

本文采用波长为532 nm的Nd:YAG单脉冲纳秒激光器诱导激发土壤(样品土壤来自蚌埠学院校园),并分析测量了土壤中铜元素的激光诱导击穿光谱特性.以铜元素的特征谱线Cu(393.3 nm)作为分析线,优化了实验参数增强型光电耦合器件(ICCD)门宽,ICCD门延迟对等离子体信号的影响,并在优化后的实验条件下测量分析了土壤中的金属元素种类.实验结果表明优化后的实验参数:ICCD门宽500ns,ICCD门延迟500 ns;在该优化条件下检测到样品土壤中含有金属元素:Fe, Cr, Ca, Mg, Cu, Al, Mn.     

Comparison between single- and double-pulse LIBS at different air pressures on silicon target

A comparative study between single- and double-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was performed on an n-type silicon(111) target. A new mobile double-pulse instrument for LIBS analysis was used for the measurements. The experiment was carried out at different air pressures of 0.7, 470 and 1000 hPa. It has been found that, in the case of double-pulse LIBS, the emission intensities of atomic and ionic lines are strongly enhanced at higher pressures. Using Stark broadening of the atomic lines of silicon, it was found that the electron number densities for single and double pulses are approximately the same (N_e∼10¹⁷ cm^-3). Plasma excitation and ionization temperatures were determined from a Boltzmann plot. The double-pulse laser-induced plasma was studied at different interpulse delay times of 1, 2, 5, 10, 15, 25 and 50 μs. The results indicated that the interaction between the laser, plasma and target gives higher atomic and ionic intensities at shorter interpulse delay times. PACS 52.38.Mf; 79.20.Ds; 52.50.Jm     

High-speed two-frame shadowgraphy for velocity measurements of laser-induced plasma and shock-wave evolution

We describe a high-speed, two-frame shadowgraph method for the two-dimensional visualization of an expanding laser-induced plasma and shock wave in two time instances. The developed experimental method uses a 30 ps, green-laser, polarized pulse for the direct and delayed illumination separated by a variable time delay in the range from 300 ps to 30 ns. Since the exposed images of a single event are captured with two CCD cameras, the established method enables velocity measurements of the fast laser-induced phenomena within the nanosecond excitation-laser pulse as well as at later times-when the excitation-laser radiation has already ended.     

运用响应面分析法优化激光诱导土壤等离子体测试参数

测试参数的选择和优化是进行激光诱导击穿光谱（LIBS）试验的重要步骤之一,合适的测试参数能够保障所得光谱数据的准确性。本研究运用LIBS技术,以土壤中主要元素（硅、铁、镁、钙、铝、钠、钾等）为载体,研究LIBS不同测试参数对元素谱线特性影响,优化得到普适的土壤测试条件。设计了以LIBS系统中激光脉冲能量（LE）、延迟时间（DT）和聚焦透镜到样品的距离（LTSD）三因素的二次中心组合的试验,以土壤中主要元素的特征谱线组合信背比（SBR）Y_SBR为目标函数,分析了三因素之间交互作用对Y_SBR的影响。结果表明：因素DT对Y_SBR的线性效果显著,而LE和LTSD对Y_SBR的线性效果均不显著;三者的交互影响对Y_SBR的交互效果都不显著;对于二次项LE2,DT2和LTSD2对Y_SBR的曲面效应均显著。优化得到最佳的试验条件是：激光能量LE为103.09 mJ,延迟时间为2.92 μs,透镜到样品的距离LTSD为97.69 mm,得到最大组合信背比Y_SBR为198.602。这些测试参数是后期LIBS数据准确分析的前提,为田间实地土壤LIBS检测参数的选择提供重要的借鉴。     

金属特性对激光诱导击穿光谱最佳实验参数的影响

采用波长为532nm的单脉冲激光诱导两种金属样品铜和锌，产生等离子光谱，固定激光能量40mJ、门宽100ns、光谱仪入射狭缝0.1mm、ICCD增益100等参数，研究金属样品物理化学特性对汇聚透镜焦点到样品表面距离、ICCD采集延迟等最优化实验参数的影响.实验中分别选取铜样品Cu（I）521.82nm和锌样品Zn（I）481.053nm谱线作为LIBS信号，实验测定的透镜焦点在距样品表面不同距离处的LIBS信号强度，结果表明铜和锌样品的聚焦透镜焦点分别在样品表面内距表面的距离为5mm和5.5mm时得到光谱信号强度最大；铜和锌的ICCD探测延时分别为1300ns和1100ns时等离子体光谱信号的信噪比最大并具有可观测的强度，依据铜和锌样品物理化学特性的差异对实验结果进行了合理的分析与讨论，为后续研究金属样品LIBS技术的基底效应、纳米结构增强激光诱导击穿光谱机理提供数据参考.     

Plasma property effects on spectral line broadening in double-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

Double-pulse Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) in an orthogonal configuration was used to investigate plasma temperature and electron density effects on Mg II emission spectral line broadening. The experiments were carried out with two Nd:YAG lasers, one operating at 355 nm for ablation and the other one at 1064 nm for plasma reheating in air at atmospheric pressure. Temporally resolved plasma temperature and electron density were measured at various delay times. Data in this study show prolonged emission of Mg II (280.27 nm) as well as enhancement of the signal intensity when using double-pulse excitation compared to the single-pulse case. An enhancement of ～8× was attained with a delay between the laser pulses equal to 1 μs. The enhancement was accompanied by higher plasma temperature and increased electron density. The double-pulse LIBS configuration provides energy to sustain the plasma emission at a period in time when the linewidth is minimum, thereby improving the analytical capabilities of low spectral resolution instrumentation typically used in LIBS system.     

Characteristics of emission from laser-induced plasma of metallic compounds in gaseous condition: The effects of gas pressure and laser pulse energy

Low-pressure laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was employed to measure mercury, strontium, and cesium under different conditions. Mercury was measured in detail to discuss the effects of pressure, laser pulse energy, delay time, and buffer gas. The continuum emission from plasma reduced dramatically to enhance signal-to-background ratio due to the change of influence of electron impact ionization process when reducing pressure and decreasing laser pulse energy to some extent. The comparison of mercuric chloride and mercury, as well as strontium and cesium measurements, demonstrates the enhancement of detection ability for trace species measurement using low-pressure LIBS.     

Double-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for trace element analysis in sintered iron oxide ceramics

Double-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an emerging technique for accurate compositional analysis of many different materials. We present a systematic study of collinear double-pulse LIBS for analysis of the trace and side elements boron, manganese, copper, aluminum, titanium, silicon, chromium, nickel, potassium, and calcium in sintered iron oxide targets. The samples were ablated in air by single-pulse and double-pulse Nd:YAG laser radiation (6 ns pulse duration, laser wavelength of 532 nm) and spectra were recorded with an Echelle spectrometer equipped with an ICCD camera. We investigated the evolution of atomic and ionic line emission intensities for different interpulse delay times between the laser pulses (from 100 ns to 50 μs) and gate delays after the second laser pulse. We also varied the energy partition between the first and second laser pulse and the size of the irradiated spot at the sample surface. For the trace and side elements, we observed double-pulse LIBS signals that were enhanced as compared to single-pulse measurements depending on the interpulse delay time, the energy partition between the pulses, and the spot size. For the elements boron, copper, aluminum, titanium, chromium, potassium, and calcium limits of detection below 10 ppm were achieved.     

激光感生击穿光谱技术（LIBS）的原理及影响因素

激光感生击穿光谱技术（LIBS）具有不需制备样品,快速分析,可进行实时控制的特点显示了巨大实际应用价值,文中介绍了激光感生击穿光谱技术（LIBS）的发展历史、研究现状及其原理。同时通过重复频率为20 Hz,最高单脉冲能量为50　mJ的纳秒激光（10 ns,1　064 nm）研究了在不同激发条件下Cr和Co薄膜产生的光谱信号。得出对于Cr膜当激发能量小于10 mJ时,信号差异不明显。但是当激发能量超过10　mJ时将产生明显的变化。分析了激光特性、延迟时间、实验装置、环境气体的种类及压力、单/双脉冲、以及采用的理论分析方法对LIBS探测结果的影响。     

激光诱导氩气等离子体时间分辨特性研究

激光诱导击穿光谱(L IB S)以激光诱导微等离子体的原子发射为技术特征,在科研与工业领域正得到重视与蓬勃发展.作为环境气体的氩气对等离子体演化过程中粒子的碰撞过程有重要影响,决定着L IBS技术分析性能的发挥.利用光谱诊断技术深入研究LIBS技术条件下氩气的光谱特征,对于提升LIBS技术及其应用水平具有重要的意义.利...     

Determination of Chloride Content in Different Types of Cement Using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy

The characterization and accurate determination of the chloride content in cement/concrete is very important for the assessment of the durability and safety of a concrete structure. The available analytical techniques are relatively expensive and time consuming. In this study, a laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system was used for determination of elemental composition in three different types of cement samples. The plasma was generated by focusing a pulsed Nd: YAG laser at 1064 nm on the cement samples. The concentrations of different elements of significance for structural stability in cement samples were determined. The evaluation of the potential and the capabilities of LIBS as a rapid tool for characterization of cement samples is discussed. The optimum LIBS setup and experimental conditions to detect and measure chloride in building materials are reported. The LIBS results were compared with the results obtained using a standard analytical technique such as inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy (ICP–ES). The limits of detection were determined, and calibration curves were measured. The results of this investigation indicate the reliability of LIBS to characterize different cement samples and to assess the chloride content in these cements.     

Early stage expansion and time-resolved spectral emission of laser-induced plasma from polymer

In the nanosecond laser ablation regime, absorption of laser energy by the plasma during its early stage expansion critically influences the properties of the plasma and thus its interaction with ambient air. These influences can significantly alter spectral emission of the plasma. For organic samples especially, recombination of the plasma with the ambient air leads to interfering emissions with respect to emissions due to native species evaporated from the sample. Distinguishing interfering emissions due to ambient air represents a critical issue for the application of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to the analysis of organic materials. In this paper, we report observations of early stage expansion and interaction with ambient air of the plasma induced on a typical organic sample (nylon) using time-resolved shadowgraph. We compare, in the nanosecond ablation regime, plasmas induced by infrared (IR) laser pulses (1064 nm) and ultraviolet (UV) laser pulses (266 nm). Nanosecond ablation is compared with femtosecond ablation where the post-ablation interaction is absent. Subsequent to the early stage expansion, we observe for each studied ablation regime, spectral emission from CN, a typical radical for organic and biological samples. Time-resolved LIBS allows identifying emissions from native molecular species and those due to recombination with ambient air through their different time evolution behaviors.