Atomic Emission Spectroscopy: Interference

Like AAS, atomic emission spectroscopy, or AES, is affected by spectral and analyte interferences, but the high atomization temperature of AES shifts the balance of their impact.

High-temperature atomizers excite a wider range of elements and produce complex emissions themselves, making spectral interferences arising from overlapping emission lines or bands a greater concern.

So, AES minimizes these interferences with high instrument resolution, optimal detector placement in low-background regions, effective background correction methods, and identifying alternative emission lines.

Chemical interferences, on the other hand, arise from interactions between analytes and other species to form stable compounds.

Because fewer species are stable in plasma conditions, inorganic anions, organic solvents, and other dissolved species contribute less interference.

Plasma sources also have abundant electrons to offset ionization interference, and introducing easily ionizable elements into samples and standards further counteracts chemical interferences and improves sensitivity.

Further, self-absorption of emitted radiation by ground-state analyte atoms before detection is also less likely in plasma because of the shorter path length and more uniform temperature.