LASER INDUCED BREAKDOWN SPECTROSCOPY INSTRUMENTATION FOR REAL-TIME ELEMENTAL ANALYSIS

• US 20120033212A1
• Filed: 07/11/2011
• Published: 02/09/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Los Alamos National Security LLC (Government of the United States of America)
• Original Assignee: Los Alamos National Security LLC (Government of the United States of America)
• Inventors: Barefield, James E. II
• Application Number:
  US13/180,321
• Publication Number:
  US 20120033212A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/318
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/718 Laser microanalysis, i.e. with formation of sample plasma
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/0221 Portable; cableless; compact; hand-held

Abstract

A backpack laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy LIBS system to provide rapid in-field elemental analysis of environmental samples important to the safeguarding of special nuclear materials.

Claims

1. An apparatus for measuring the contents of an analysis sample, comprising:

(a) a pulsed laser energy emitter;

(b) an optical transmission medium for focusing energy from said pulsed laser energy emitter onto said analysis sample, for generating a plasma state in a portion of said analysis sample; and

(c) a detector for measuring spectral characteristics of energy emitted from said analysis sample when exposed to focused energy, wherein the apparatus is portable.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the weight of the apparatus is no more than 25 pounds.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus is a backpack.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a high resolution spectrograph.

5. A method for measuring the content of an analysis sample comprising the steps of:

(a) emitting laser pulses from a pulsed laser energy emitter;

(b) focusing energy from said pulsed laser energy emitter on said analysis sample, thereby generating a plasma state in a portion of said analysis sample;

(c) measuring spectral characteristics of energy emitted from said analysis sample when exposed to focused energy; and

(d) detecting elements in said analysis sample by the presence of narrow spectral line characteristics, wherein the method is completed in real-time.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step of comparing the spectral characteristics to a known database containing spectral characteristic of a variety of materials.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the measurements of the spectral characteristics are made remotely.