Table 3.

Advantages, limitations, and some possible future biomedical applications of LIBS

LIBS	Analytical features
Advantages	i. Quick and in-situ analysis. ii. Capability of in-vivo analysis. iii. Capability to analyze solids, liquids, gases, as well as microorganism. iv. Simultaneous and multi-elemental analysis capability. v. Point detection capability. vi. Capability to analyze the samples in hostile environment. vii. Capability of stand-off detection. viii. Potential for underwater analysis. ix. Lack of tedious sample preparation steps. x. Potential of LIBS for direct real-time analysis of biomedical specimens without the addition of any biochemical precursors, antigenic, genetic amplification steps, acid digestion steps, etc. xi. Potential to deliver a LIBS-based medical probe for current medical practitioner in surgery and dentistry.
Limitations	i. One potential limitation is the destructive nature of the analysis of very small biological samples. ii. Limited utility for the analysis of proteins and biochemical disease markers generally composed of C, H, N, and O. iii. Difficulty in effective quantification of the lighter elements such as C, H, N, and O. iv. Limits of detection (typically in ppm range) are generally not as good as those of the conventional techniques. v. Difficult to get suitable matrix-matched standards in case of biological samples such as gallstones, kidney stones, tissues, etc. vi. Precision is poor as compared to conventional techniques.
Future prospects for biomedical applications	i. In vivo discriminate between malignant tissues from non-malignant tissues. ii. In vivo or in vitro study of kidney stones, gall bladder stones, urinary stones. iii. Real-time identification of caries dental tissue. iv. In-vivo measurement of heavy metal elements with high spatial resolution of in bones, in joints, or in other tissues. v. Identification of bacteria in human fluid specimens. vi. Rapid classification bacterial strain for epidemiology and infection control in hospitals and clinics. vii. Monitoring of surface contamination. viii. Real-time testing of urinary tract bacterial infection.