A “wire” signal smoothing device for laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis

A novel signal smoothing device for laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was developed. The “wire” signal smoothing device consists of a copper cylinder filled with steel wire, with an internal volume of approx. 94 cm3. The effectiveness of the “wire” signal smoothing device was evaluated with respect to both signal stability and decay time. With the developed “wire” smoothing device, no oscillation of the signal intensity was observed, even at a repetition rate of 1 Hz. This finding indicates that this device is well suited for routine optimization of laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The signal stability was improved by a factor of 11 compared to the absence of a signal smoothing device at a repetition rate of 1 Hz. Another significant advantage of the “wire” smoothing device is that the signal decay time is similar to that without the signal smoothing device. These properties cause the “wire” smoothing device to be well suited for low repetition rate laser ablation analysis, which provides smaller elemental fractionation and better spatial resolution. The proposed “wire” signal smoothing device has been successfully used for high depth resolution zircon dating.

► The wire stabilizer is able to provide smooth signals at a repetition rate of 1 Hz.
► The signal decay time is similar to that in the absence of a signal stabilizer.
► The wire stabilizer has been successfully used for zircon dating.