Electrothermal Vaporization for Sample Introduction in Atomic Emission Spectrometry

Abstract

The importance of trace elements in environmental, nutritional, clinical, forensic, toxicological, and other fields has been well recognized. Among the variety of analytical techniques available for trace element determinations, atomic spectrometry is one of the most popular. This technique may further be divided into atomic absorption, atomic emission, and atomic fluorescence, with the latter two more amenable to multielement analyses. These atomic techniques require the introduction of samples into a high-temperature atom reservoir where atomic (or ionic) vapors are produced. These high-temperature atom sources include flames; the inductively coupled plasma, ICP; microwave-induced plasma, MIP; direct current plasma, DCP; and the graphite furnace.