Techniques: Auto-Focus

The need to analyze diverse solid samples, including environmental waste, geological materials, biological tissues, metals, thin paint coatings, semiconductors, etc., without laborious dissolution methods has driven the advancement of laser ablation-based analytical techniques. In particular, one branch of these techniques known as Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) offers the unique advantages of rapid, in situ, multi-element analyses.

LIBS is a simple technique that uses a tightly focused laser beam to generate a small spark on the surface of a target. This spark (microplasma) contains excited elemental and molecular species that were ablated from the surface of the target.

The Importance of Auto-Focus

Imperfect focusing in LIBS measurements can dramatically affect the measured spectral intensities and, in turn, the quantitative determination of material components. For example, when moving from one location on the sample to another, changes in the sample topography can affect precision during automatic analysis if the laser beam is not refocused, thus maintaining the same ablation conditions.

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