title: An investigation into the spatial elemental distribution within a pane of glass by time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry.
abstract: Advances in the technology employed for the manufacture of glass have resulted in a final glass product with little variability in terms of its physical and optical properties. For example, the refractive index of Australian float glass tends to lie between 1.5189 and 1.5194. It has therefore become necessary to complement physical and optical methods for forensic glass comparison with instrumental elemental analyses. In a previous study, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry has been shown to offer potential for the analysis of glass particles as small as a few tens of microns across. In this study, the three-dimensional homogeneity of a sheet of float glass is described, and consequences for forensic elemental analysis of glass particles of such size are explored. Variation in Si, Ca, Mg, and Na levels immediately under the nonfloat surface was observed, with the variance accompanied by a decrease in refractive index.
authors.affiliation: Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Human Protection and Performance Division, Fishermans Bend, VIC, Australia.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Coumbaros
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Denman
authors.forename: K Paul
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Kirkbride
authors.forename: G Stewart
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Skinner