Laser Ablation History

At the ripe age of 40 years old (the first laser, i.e., ruby laser, was reported in 1960 by T.H. Maiman [1] in 1954 there were masers [2], the abbreviation also being used for means of attaining support for expensive research [3]), the laser has become a mature technological device with many applications. 

This was not always true, of course. For many years, the laser was viewed as an answer in search of a question . That is, it was seen as an elegant device, but one with no real useful application outside of fundamental scientific research. In the last two to three decades however, numerous laser applications have moved from the laboratory to the industrial workplace or the commercial market. 

Lasers are unique energy sources characterized by their spectral purity, spatial and temporal coherence, and high average peak intensity. Each of these characteristics has led to applications that take advantage of these qualities  

Another important development of laser ablation started in 1983, when the first deposition of a superconducting film by laser ablation was reported [25], but became only well-known after reinvention in 1987 for thin films of high-temperature superconductors (Y-Ba-Cu-oxides) [26]. 

Laser ablation-based microanalysis techniques have also become very successful, e.g., matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) has revolutionized the identification and study of large molecular weight biomolecules and polymers [28, 29]. 

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Evans, R. D., Richner, P., and Outridge, P.M. (1995). Micro-spatial variations of heavy metals in the teeth of Walrus as determined by laser ablation ICP-MS The potential for reconstructing a history of metal exposure. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 28 55-60. 

Garbe-Schonberg, C. D., Reimann, C., and Pavlov, V. A. (1997). Laser ablation ICP-MS analyses of tree-ring profiles in pine and birch from N Norway and NW Russia -a reliable record of the pollution history of the area Environmental Geology 32 9 16. 

The distributions of trace elements between minerals and within a suite of related rocks provide powerful tools for constraining the origin and history of rocks and meteorites. Trace-element abundances for rocks typically are part of the data set collected when determining bulk compositions. Trace element compositions of minerals require more powerful techniques such as the ion microprobe or the laser-ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICPMS). 

The advent of laser ablation MC-ICP-MS technology allows the rapid in situ determination of the stable isotope ratios of heavy metals commonly found in sulfide ore deposits (e.g., Cu, Zn, Fe, Sb, Ag) providing important information on the source, transport, and depositional mechanisms of these metals. Pb, Pb, and Pb are formed as the end product of radioactive decay and the isotopic variability of lead results because the elements from which the isotopes form were not evenly distributed in ore bodies. Hence, the analysis of stable lead isotopes in annually laminated lake-sediments is a useful method to study lead pollution history as the relative contribution of pollution and natural lead in sediment samples can be calculated. The analysis of lead isotopes by SIMS has also been used to identify the geographical origin of bullets. 

The analysis of fluid inclusions in minerals has also benefited from LA-ICP-MS, where the combination of a UV laser capable of ablating transparent minerals such as quartz with the elemental sensitivity of ICP-MS has enabled significant advances in several areas of research. Early work rapidly validated the approach and the technique is now gaining widespread acceptance across many facets of the geosciences. " Examples of applications include the analysis of inclusions in halite, evaluation of the emplacement history of mineral deposits, " and the evaluation of hydrothermal history of granitic bodies. ... 

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