EXPRESS: Detection of Food Contamination Using a Hybrid Raman and Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) System

Due to the prevalence of food fraud and its associated risks to human health, food safety and quality assurance systems must become more comprehensive, rapid, and accurate. Food fraud often involves contamination, which refers to the presence of harmful substances in food, including biological, chemical, and physical adulterants. Traditional detection methods, such as microbiological and chemical testing, are limited in sensitivity, are time-consuming, and often lack comprehensive analysis capabilities. This report presents the development of a hybrid Raman and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system, referred to as Hy-R-LIBS, for the quantitative analysis of food contaminants on fruit surfaces. In this work, the term hybrid denotes a system in which both spectroscopic modalities are co-housed within a single optical chassis, share a common optical path, and perform automated sequential acquisition on the same sample spot, enabling either independent or joint analysis of the resulting spectra. Raman spectroscopy provides molecular fingerprinting capability, while LIBS enables elemental analysis at low concentrations. The miniaturization of the combined system is feasible because Raman and LIBS share similar optical pathways. To overcome the inherently weak Raman scattering cross-section that limits sensitivity in portable systems, a surface-enhancement strategy based on silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) was employed, which improves both Raman scattering signals and LIBS plasma emission. The study demonstrated that AgNP-assisted surface enhancement improves both LIBS and Raman signals, as confirmed by the quantitative analysis of food contaminants on fruit peel. Pesticide and heavy -metal controls were used, and the limit of detection (LOD) for various contaminants was estimated. The results indicate the feasibility of the hybrid system and the enhancement achieved through surface-enhancement techniques. Overall, the Hy-R-LIBS system offers a promising approach for the quantitative analysis of food contaminants. The combination of these optical spectroscopic techniques enables comprehensive investigations of complex food matrices contaminated with both organic chemicals and metallic residues, providing valuable insights for food safety assurance and public health.