Measurement of hydrogen release of cultural heritage materials during ion beam analysis using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy of gas enhanced by solid initiator (GENS-LIBS)

Abstract

Gas optical emission enhanced by solid initiator (GENS) is designed to support the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique for studying the impact of intense radiation beams on cultural heritage materials. GENS-LIBS generates plasma in the atmosphere using a metal target, which increases sensitivity while lowering laser irradiance. This method is designed to monitor gas emissions from ancient materials during intense radiation analysis, particularly under ion beam irradiation. The study focused on analyzing hydrogen gas emissions from lead white pigments mixed with linseed oil as a binder in paintings. The results show that the GENS-LIBS method has allowed us to quantify the hydrogen emission of lead white-containing paint layers exposed to 10 to 40 μC/cm2 of 3 MeV protons in a specially designed sealed cell. This technique permits the tracking of hydrogen and other light elements, such as oxygen and nitrogen, thus facilitating the follow-up of changes in the material composition of artworks. GENS-LIBS offers a promising method for safely analyzing and preserving valuable cultural heritage artifacts.