Comparison of radiation effects for a ceramics and a single crystal microchip of a Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) system for remote analysis

Tamura, Koji; Nakanishi, Ryuzo; Oba, Hironori  ; Wakaida, Ikuo  

For the remote elemental analysis in radiation environment, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system has been developed, where micro-chip laser (MCL) using a Nd:YAG/Cr:YAG composite was utilized. In this development, composite ceramics was used as a gain medium, because ceramics has various features such as scalability and high dope concentration, which make ceramics gain medium promising for future applications. In this study, for the development of the remote LIBS system applicable in radiation environment, radiation effects to the properties of the ceramics Nd:YAG MCL as well as conventional single crystal Nd:YAG MCL were measured and compared.