RNDr. Zdeněk Weiss, CSc.
The laboratory is focused on the analysis of elemental composition and concentration depth profiles of metals, alloys, inorganic coatings, thin films and surface-treated materials by methods of emission spectroscopy. Most elements of the periodic table can be analyzed, including light elements H, O, N, B. Concentration ranges, precision and accuracy of the analyses depend on the element–matrix combination under study and the availability of suitable reference materials for calibration.
Glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GD-OES) is used for the analyses. It is a destructive method providing information about the composition, averaged over certain area on the sample. Typical depths of depth-resolved analysis range between tens of nanometers and tens of micrometers.
Besides analytical applications, work is going on also on the methodology and the interpretation of GD-OES analyses and the physical processes involved. In particular, we are interested in the excitation and ionization of various elements in non-equilibrium, weakly ionized glow discharge plasmas, with links to the optical plasma diagnostics, collisional-radiative models and excitation by heavy particles (atoms and ions).
Major scientific societies active in analytical spectroscopy and glow discharge-based methods:
European Working group for Glow Discharge Spectroscopy
Spektroskopická společnost Jana Marka Marci