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The Incorporation of Laser Ablation for Sampling into a Proton X-ray Emission System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 March 2011

Meg Abraham
Affiliation:
Department of MaterialsUniversity of Oxford Parks Rd, Oxford, UK
Peter Northover
Affiliation:
Department of MaterialsUniversity of Oxford Parks Rd, Oxford, UK
Geoff Grime
Affiliation:
Department of MaterialsUniversity of Oxford Parks Rd, Oxford, UK
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Abstract

The variation with depth of the composition of corrosion layers on buried metal objects can provide the archaeologist with valuable information relating to the burial conditions of the object. In some cases these layers can be very thick and so, normally destructive methods such as sampling are used to characterise the metal and corrosion layers when possible. We have developed a system for the use of a microfocused high power pulsed Nd:YAG laser to ablate the corrosion layer in a series of controlled steps while monitoring the composition of the exposed surface using focused PIXE and RBS in the external beam facility of the Oxford Scanning Proton Microprobe. With proper manipulation of the data we are able to calculate the values for trace elements at various depths in the corrosion layer. It is hoped that this system will lead to a better understanding of corrosion properties.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2002

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References

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