Analysis of Latent Fingerprint Deposits by Infrared Microspectroscopy

We report the use of infrared (IR) microspectroscopy for the analysis of fingerprint residues. The advantage of using an IR microscope lies in the ability to visualize and obtain spectra of individual particles and droplets that make up fingerprint ridge deposits at a spatial resolution of approxima...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied spectroscopy 2004-03, Vol.58 (3), p.313-316
Main Authors: Williams, Diane K., Schwartz, Rebecca L., Bartick, Edward G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Age Factors
Child
Dermatoglyphics
Face
Forensic Sciences - instrumentation
Forensic Sciences - methods
Hand
Hand Disinfection
Humans
Microscopy - instrumentation
Microscopy - methods
Reproducibility of Results
Sebum - chemistry
Spectrophotometry, Infrared - instrumentation
Spectrophotometry, Infrared - methods
Squalene - analysis
Sweat - chemistry
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We report the use of infrared (IR) microspectroscopy for the analysis of fingerprint residues. The advantage of using an IR microscope lies in the ability to visualize and obtain spectra of individual particles and droplets that make up fingerprint ridge deposits at a spatial resolution of approximately 10 μm. Our initial results suggest that infrared microspectroscopy in reflection–absorption mode provides reproducible spectral analysis of fingerprint residue. Since infrared microspectroscopy is nondestructive to the sample, we will be able to study the changes in fingerprint ridge deposits as a function of time. The method holds promise for probing the difference between latent fingerprints of adults and children.
ISSN:0003-7028
1943-3530
DOI:10.1366/000370204322886663