Real-time detection of GSR particles from crime scene: A comparative study of SEM/EDX and portable LIBS system

The use of modern technologies that can help optimise the collection of evidence that contains Gunshot Residue (GSR) from crime scene investigation leads to obtaining better results in forensic laboratories. With this objective, equipment based on LIBS (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) technology has been developed named iForenLIBS. This study intends to evaluate the effective capacity of the aforementioned system. To do this, results were gathered from the analysis of real samples using LIBS equipment and were compared to those obtained by way of Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX) in the laboratory. The system has verified its capacity to analyse GSR particles through simultaneous detection of the three characteristic elements of ammunition used (Sb-Pb-Ba) even in stub where only a single particle was found.