This textbook is an outgrowth of the author's experience in teaching a
course, primarily to graduate students in chemistry, that included the
subject matter presented in this book. The increasing use and importance
of atomic spectroscopy as an analytical tool are quite evident to anyone
involved in elemental analysis. A number of books are available that may
be considered treatises in the various fields that use atomic spectra
for analytical purposes. These include areas such as arc-spark emission
spectroscopy, flame emission spectroscopy, and atomic absorption
spectroscopy. Other books are available that can be catalogued as
"methods" books. Most of these books serve well the purpose for which
they were written but are not well adapted to serve as basic textbooks
in their fields. This book is intended to fill the aforementioned gap
and to present the basic principles and instrumentation involved in
analytical atomic spectro- scopy. To meet this objective, the book
includes an elementary treatment of the origin of atomic spectra, the
instrumentation and accessory equipment used in atomic spectroscopy, and
the principles involved in arc-spark emission, flame emission, atomic
absorption, and atomic fluorescence. The chapters in the book that deal
with the methods of atomic spectro- scopy discuss such things as the
basic principles involved in the method, the instrumentation
requirements, variations of instrumentation, advantages and
disadvantages of the method, problems of interferences, detection
limits, the collection and processing of the data, and possible
applications.