Integrated Laser Sensor (ILS) for Remote Surface Analysis: Application for Detecting Explosives in Fingerprints

Overview

Journal Sensors (Basel)

Publisher MDPI

Specialty Biotechnology

Date 2019 Oct 5

PMID 31581543

Citations 4

Authors

Violeta Lazic

Antonio Palucci

Luigi De Dominicis

Marcello Nuvoli

Marco Pistilli

Ivano Menicucci

Francesco Colao

Salvatore Almaviva

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Here, we describe an innovative Integrated Laser Sensor (ILS) that combines four spectroscopic techniques and two vision systems into a unique, transportable device. The instrument performs Raman and Laser-Induced Fluorescence (LIF) spectroscopy excited at 355 nm and Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) excited at 1064 nm, and it also detects Laser Scattering (LS) from the target under illumination at 650 nm. The combination of these techniques supplies information about: material change from one scanning point to another, the presence of surface contaminants, and the molecular and elemental composition of top target layers. Switching between the spectroscopic techniques and the laser wavelengths is fully automatic. The instrument is equipped with an autofocus, and it performs scanning with a chosen grid density over an interactively-selected target area. Alternative to the spectroscopic measurements, it is possible to switch the instrument to a high magnification target viewing. The working distances tested until now are between 8.5 and 30 m. The instrument is self-powered and remotely controlled via wireless communication. The ILS has been fully developed at ENEA for security applications, and it was successfully tested in two outdoor campaigns where an automatic recognition of areas containing explosives in traces had been implemented. The strategies for the identification of nitro-compounds placed on various substrates as fingerprints and the results obtained at a working distance of 10 m are discussed in the following.

Citing Articles

A Novel LIBS Sensor for Sample Examinations on a Crime Scene.

Lazic V, Andreoli F, Almaviva S, Pistilli M, Menicucci I, Ulrich C Sensors (Basel). 2024; 24(5).

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Interpol review of the analysis and detection of explosives and explosives residues.

Klapec D, Czarnopys G, Pannuto J Forensic Sci Int Synerg. 2023; 6:100298.

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