| Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is a powerful and well-established atomic emission diagnostic for the identification and analysis of unknown samples. Recent research efforts have shown that LIBS is useful for both qualitative identification and for the quantitative measurement of relative as well as absolute analyte concentration regardless of analyte state. More recently, much interest has been directed toward the use of LIBS in the analysis of aerosol systems, including those generated by laser ablation (LA-LIBS). While LIBS offers many advantages as a diagnostic tool, there are several difficulties that limit its capability and robustness. Chief among these are matrix effects and incomplete or inhomogeneous sample vaporization. In an effort to fully understand, and eventually mitigate, these difficulties, the current work seeks to design and implement a numerical model that describes the complex plasma-particle interactions that govern the LIBS of aerosol systems. The model incorporates the processes of heat transfer, hydrodynamics, mass diffusion, vaporization, and electromagnetism. The model considers the fundamental physics of three distinct regimes: the global plasma environment, the local particle behavior, and the initial nature of plasma inception. |
