Ultratrace determination of Bi in Greenland snow by laser excited atomic fluorescence spectrometry

The results of the first determination of Bi traces in snow samples from Greenland by laser excited atomic fluorescence spectrometry are presented. A limit of detection as low as 0.05 for one-color LEAFS technique is attained. Strong matrix interference in real snow samples was observed and some ways of reducing this are tested. The main source of background is molecular fluorescence of unidentified species. The measured Bi concentration in snow samples ranges within 0.07–0.6 .