title: Silicon isotope ratios affected by sodium-induced broadband interference in high resolution multicollector-ICPMS.
abstract: The measurement of isotope ratios of silicon highly enriched in (28)Si ("Si28", x((28)Si) > 99.99%) is influenced by a significant interference (20%) on the (30)Si(+) signal when using a cup configuration of C ((29)Si(+)) and H3 ((30)Si(+)) on a Neptune MC-ICPMS. This interference was observed in silicon solutions with aqueous NaOH (w(NaOH) > 0.001 g/g) and in highly concentrated aqueous NaOH blank solutions (e.g., w(NaOH) = 0.25 g/g) but never in KOH solutions. By redirecting the ions, the interference was detected with all other Faraday cups except the center cup. The interference can be explained by ion scattering induced by the presence of large amounts of sodium. Due to its shielded location, these stray ions were not detected in the center cup. This effect explains an anomalous increase of the abundance of the (30)Si(+) signal in (30)Si/(29)Si isotope ratio measurements made using aqueous NaOH blank solutions with w(NaOH) ≥ 0.001 g/g. For silicon isotopic measurements, it is recommended to use alkaline solutions for sample dissolution and dilution that do not contain sodium. The effects of this interference are extremely important for the experimental determination of the Avogadro constant N(A) using the "silicon sphere approach". It can also have a significant effect on Si isotope analyses in matrices with a naturally high concentration of sodium (e.g., seawater).
authors.affiliation: Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Braunschweig, Germany. axel.pramann@ptb.de
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pramann
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Rienitz
authors.forename: Detlef
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schiel