Abstract

Using a spark source mass spectrograph, a search has been made for undiscovered naturally occurring isotopes of low abundance. None was found, although the spark source instrument permitted examination of elements that have not been analyzed in this context for many years. The ability of the instrument to ionize all elements and the ease with which the rarer isotopes may be seen allowed upper limits of <0 000001 atom % to be placed on some isotopes. Be, P, Mn, Co, As, Rh, Au, and Bi were confirmed as monoisotopic.

Resonance-ionization mass spectrometry for high-resolution, mass-resolved spectra of rare isotopes

Charles M. Miller, Rolf Engleman, and Richard A. Keller
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 2(9) 1503-1509 (1985)

Probing argon–benzene van der Waals molecules and isotopically substituted benzene with laser-ionization mass spectrometry

Kevin G. Owens and James P. Reilly
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 2(9) 1589-1593 (1985)

Doppler-free saturation spectroscopy of lutetium isotopes through resonance-ionization mass spectrometry

Bryan L. Fearey, Denise C. Parent, Richard A. Keller, and Charles M. Miller
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 7(1) 3-8 (1990)

Selective isotope determination of lanthanum by diode-laser-initiated resonance-ionization mass spectrometry

J. P. Young and R. W. Shaw
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 12(8) 1398-1402 (1995)

Isotope shifts of C I spectral lines and their application to radioactive dating by laser-assisted mass spectrometry

Charles W. Clark
Opt. Lett. 8(11) 572-574 (1983)