Simulation of Optical Emission Spectra of Cu-Sn-Zn Alloy Plasmas for Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Applications

Abstract

Abstract Atomic emission spectroscopy (AES) is a potential tool for qualitative and quantitative elemental analysis of multi-element materials. The emission spectrum is composed of the characteristic lines of the constituent species, and their intensities are proportional to the population of their energy states and transition probability. We simulated the emission spectrum of copper-tin-zinc alloys under typical laser-induced plasma conditions (e.gTe= 1 eVand Ne = 1017cmr3). Saha LTE equation determines the population of neutral and ionised species for each of these constituent elements. The Boltzmann distribution is used to calculate the strength of their probable transitions, and each line is given a broadened Gaussian profile. Their sum will approximate an ideal plasma spectrum of the alloy. Spectra are generated for varying temperatures, electron density, and compositions and show variations based on these parameters. This simulation provides a simple and convenient way to perform laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) applications on any alloy sample.