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The Mini S analyser may look like something out of Ghostbusters but it is designed for use in hazardous locations © ACSThe latest gadget to come out of the labs of Purdue University in the US may look like the fictional ‘proton pack’ from Ghostbusters, but it’s actually a portable mass spectrometer that can be carried around on the user’s back. While it can’t capture an unruly poltergeist, the team who developed it say it could be a useful tool for environmental and forensic monitoring, and have shown it can identify chemical weapons, drugs and explosives.Most mass spectrometry happens in...

A simple and fast technique to examine the surface of banknotes and identify counterfeits has been developed by scientists in Brazil and the US.The counterfeiting of banknotes is a global problem that is increasing in scale and sophistication. Counterfeiters now use computerised reproduction methods like scanners and laser printers to copy real notes, and gone are the days when a fake could be spotted by simply testing the look and feel of the paper.The new technologies used by counterfeiters have thrown out a challenge to law enforcement. 'Forensic laboratories are therefore confronted with an increasing demand to analyse larger numbers...