Determination of rare-earth isotope ratios by resonance ionization mass spectrometry

Laser Resonance Ionization Mass Spectrometry

The analysis of inorganic atomic species is greatly facilitated by the coupling of lasers with mass spectrometers. A tunable dye laser, alone or in combination with a pump laser, ionizes atoms by resonant excitation processes; the ions are then analyzed in the mass spectrometer. The laser-mass spectrometer system promises to overcome traditional limits of sensitivity and selectivity and to have diverse applications in analytical chemistry.

Laser chemical analysis

Selected applications of laser methods to analytical problems are reviewed. Examples are chosen from multiphoton ionization and laser fluorescence analysis. Although efforts to carry out elemental analysis with laser techniques are probably the most advanced, studies suggest that the analysis of molecular species is also quite promising, particularly in regard to interfacing laser fluorimetric detection with high-performance liquid chromatography. Recent experiments indicate that analysts can expect to attain in a number of cases the ultimate limit of single-atom or single-molecule detection with laser-based methods.