Laser induced fluorescence can differentiate nodal conduction tissue from atrial and ventricular endocardium and may provide a new diagnostic tool for the recognition and subsequent ablation of nodal conduction tissue.

Fluorescence emission spectroscopy can differentiate normal and fibrotic endocardium and myocardium, in vitro. This technique may be useful for guidance during laser ablation of arrhythmogenic ventricular scar.

We present a design for a low-cost ion mobility spectrometer that can be built using the equipment on hand in many electronics-oriented undergraduate laboratories. The construction of this system is based upon the use of printed circuit boards and does not require the specialized drift and sheath gases, vacuum pumps, heater assemblies, high voltage pulsers, or precision pumps that are characteristic of the systems generally reported in the literature. We demonstrate the system in the separation of ions of methanol and water in air. Despite the low cost of this system it has a performance comparable to more complex systems, with a sensitivity of approximately 100 ppm for the protein cytochrome c. This system is suitable for use as an electronics or signal-processing project, or even a biotechnology demonstration.

A technique for eliminating electrical standing waves from the electrodes of a large area CO2 Slab laser is described. This method is general and may be used to smooth the electric field distribution over planar electrodes of arbitrary dimensions and coaxial electrodes.