A spectrochemical method of analysis of copper and copper alloys with a sensitivity capable of detecting lead, tin, iron, nickel, silicon, bismuth and aluminium at 0.001%, tellurium, arsenic and phosphorus at 0.004%, and zinc at 0.01% is described. This method differs from the conventional arc analysis in that it is based on the excitation in a selected region in the vicinity of the cathode when using a special triggered discharge of the Multisource. If the circuit constants of the Multisource are adjusted to give a heavily, over-damped discharge, and if the sample is made negative, a narrow region of enhanced sensitivity exists for certain elements in the vicinity of the cathode. This region has been demonstrated to be equivalent to the cathode layer in D.C. arc. Variations in the relative sensitivities of certain elements, as well as variations in the excitation temperature, have been investigated for various points across the discharge gap.