Synthetic Opals in Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Problems

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is first used to identify small impurity amounts in a three-dimensional ordered submicron dielectric structure exemplified by a synthetic opal matrix (SOM). A possibility of detecting metal-containing substances infiltrated in a SOM is demonstrated. The effect of the photonic bandgap and the excitation wavelength on the LIBS spectrum is shown.