Handheld LIBS spectrometer

A handheld LIBS spectrometer comprising:

• a housing;
• an optics stage movably mounted to the housing via one or more motors;
• a laser source in the housing oriented to direct a laser beam to the optics stage;
• a spectrometer subsystem in the housing configured to receive electromagnetic radiation from the optics stage and provide an output, the spectrometer subsystem including a plurality of spectrometer enclosures;
• and
• a controller subsystem responsive to the output of the spectrometer subsystem and configured to control the laser source and said one or more motors to control said one or more motors to initiate a moving spot cycle and, at each location on the sample, to initiate an auto clean routine and perform a purge cycle.

A handheld LIBS spectrometer comprising:

• a housing;
• an optics stage movably mounted to the housing via one or more motors including an optics head with a laser focusing lens and a detection lens;
• a laser source in the housing oriented to direct a laser beam to the laser focusing lens;
• a spectrometer subsystem in the housing configured to receive electromagnetic radiation from the detection lens and provide an output;
• a nose section including an end plate and a shield spaced from the end plate and in front of the optics head defining a purge cavity between the shield and the end plate;
• and
• a controller subsystem responsive to the output of the spectrometer subsystem and configured to control the laser source and said one or more motors to control said one or more motors to initiate a moving spot cycle and, at each location on the sample, to initiate an auto clean routine and perform a purge cycle.

A method of analyzing a sample using a handheld LIBS spectrometer, the method comprising:

• powering a laser to produce a laser beam spot on a sample;
• initiating an auto-focus cycle to focus the spot on the sample;
• initiating an auto-clean cycle to clean multiple locations on the sample;
• initiating a moving spot cycle to analyze the sample;
• and
• at each location on the sample, initiating the auto-clean cycle and performing a purge cycle.