Investigation of the factors affecting the limit of detection of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for surface inspection

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was examined to detect a trace substance adhered onto Al alloys for the surface inspection of materials to be adhesively bonded. As an example of Si contamination, silicone oil was employed and sprayed onto substrates with a controlled surface concentration. LIBS measurements employing nanosecond UV pulses (lambda = 266 nm) and an off-axis emission collection system with different detecting heights were performed. Because surface contaminants are involved in the plasma formed by laser ablation of the substrates, the relative contribution of the surface contaminants and the substrates to the plasma emission could be changed depending on the conditions for plasma formation. The limit of detection (LOD) was evaluated under several detecting conditions for investigating the factors that affected the LOD. A significant factor was the standard deviation values of signal intensities obtained for the clean substrates. This value varied depending on the measurement conditions. For the Al alloy (A6061), the smallest LOD obtained was 0.529 mu g . cm(-2). Furthermore, an improved LOD (0.299 mu g . cm(-2)) was obtained for the Al alloy with a lower Si content.