Signal Smoothing Device

Isotope Fractionation During Laser Ablation and Ionization 

It is widely accepted that the precision or reproducibility of isotope ratio measurements can be improved dramatically by using an MC instrument. However, further correction or careful procedural protocols are required to also improve the trueness of the resulting isotopic data. There are two major considerations for better quality isotope ratio measurements using LA-ICP-MS analysis the isotope fractionation during the LA and/or ionization process in the ICP, and the contribution of the matrix effect (non-spectral interference) to the mass bias effect. The latter is discussed in Section 4.6. First, the level of isotope fractionation during LA or ionization processes is discussed in this section. 

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Figure 4.4 System setup for LA-ICP-MS equipped with a signal smoothing device. The internal volume of the stabilizer was 52 ml. With the stabilizer device, the signal intensity can be smoothed by both the buffering of the pulsed flow and the removal of the large-sized particles.

Tunheng, A. and Hirata, T. (2004) Development of signal smoothing device For precise elemental analysis using laser ablation-ICP-mass spectrometry. 

The signals from flow rate measurements are usually noisy, which means they fluctuate around the actual value because of the turbulent flow. These signals often need to be filtered (passed through an electronic device to smooth out the signal) before being sent to the controller. 

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