SECONDARY NEUTRAL MASS-SPECTROMETRY AS A NEW TOOL FOR DEPTH RESOLVED ANALYSIS OF PARTICULATE MATTER

The applicability of SNMS for depth resolved analysis of particulate matter is shown. The method requires no pretreatment and needs only approx. 20 min for one sample. The obtained simple spectra allows a quantitation of all elements with a matrix dependence of the detection factor of < 40%. Structures of in-depth concentration profiles of < 20nm thickness can be resolved during a depth propagation of approximately 0.6 nm/sec. Compound characterization can be achieved by the identification of clusters. Examples are shown for the analysis of microparticles from pigments, outdoor aerosol and welding fume.