Simulation of particle size measurement with LIBS

The problem of small solid particle size and material detection is important for industrial and environmental applications. Previous investigations have shown the possibility of using the laser breakdown method to address the first issue; the sensitivity of this method is a thousand times higher than that of conventional methods. However, for small particle sizes, the damage threshold of the solid target in this case is very close to the breakdown point of pure gas. After breakdown, there is a small volume of dense hot plasma that emits radiation. We analyzed this radiation especially at the late stage using an analytical model and simulation code, and found that the emission intensity varied depending on the laser type and plasma parameters including initial particle size.