Particle-Fluorescence Spectrometer for Real-Time Single-Particle Measurements of Atmospheric Organic Carbon and Biological Aerosol

A particle-fluorescence spectrometer (PFS) for real-time measurements of single-particle UV-laser-induced fluorescence (UV-LIF) excited with a pulsed (263-nm) laser is reported. The dispersed UV-LIF spectra are measured by a 32-anode PMT detector with spectral coverage from 280-600 nm. The PFS represents a significant improvement over our previous apparatus [Pinnick et al., Atmos. Environ. 2004, 38, 1657] and can (1) measure fluorescence spectra of bacterial particles having light-scattering sizes as small as 1 microm (previously limited to about 3 microm) and so can measure particles with size in the range of 1-10 microm, (2) measure each particle's elastic scattering which can be used to estimate particle size (not available previously), (3) measure single-particle fluorescence spectra with a laser and detector that can record spectra as fast as 90,000/s, although the highest rates we have found experimentally in atmospheric measurements is only several hundred per second (previously limited by detectors to only 25/s), and (4) provide a time stamp for a data block of spectra with time resolution from 10 ms to 10 min. In addition, the PFS has been modified to be more robust, transportable, and smaller. The use of an aerodynamic-focusing sheath inlet nozzle assembly has improved the sample rate. The PFS has been employed to measure UV-LIF spectra from individual atmospheric particles during October-December 2006 and January-May 2008 in New Haven, CT, and during January-May 2007 in Las Cruces, NM.