A combination of electrical spark and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy on a heated sample

Abstract

Signal enhancement in laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is the concern of many research groups. In order to increase the spectral emission of LIBS, a combination of electrical spark and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (SA-LIBS) on a heated sample (SA-LIBS-HS) is studied. The mechanism of increasing the signal is examined, and a comparison between the calculated signal enhancement and the experimental one is done. It is shown that the plasma temperature and the amount of ablation mass are the main factors for signal enhancement. As a secondary source of excitation, the electrical spark leads to an increase in the plasma temperature. Heating the sample causes an increase in the ablation mass and the plasma temperature. By heating the sample and consequently lowering the ablation threshold as well as using an electrical spark, a significant signal intensity is observed at low laser pulse energies. This study demonstrates the capability of the SA-LIBS-HS method for the further improvement of LIBS and SA-LIBS applications.