Near infra-red absorption spectroscopy for astrophysically significant ions

We present a novel laboratory astrophysics experiment to obtain photoabsorption spectra of neutral and near neutral atomic species in the near infrared (NIR) spectral region. A laser produced plasma containing the ions of interest is probed by the collimated output of a supercontinuum fiber laser. The resulting absorption spectrum is recorded on a 0.75-m spectrograph equipped with a complimentary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) camera. Spectra of yttrium plasmas were recorded 11 $\mu$ s after its formation in the range from 700 to 1100 nm, and we present the spectrum between 708 to 832 nm to illustrate the capabilities of the technique. In this range we found 26 lines previously identified and 29 lines not previously identified. The importance of new atomic structure data, in particular transition energies and relative oscillator strengths, is highlighted in the context of increasingly sophisticated ground and space-based spectrometers in the era of multi-messenger astronomy. Future developments and improvements are briefly discussed.