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Articles » Crime Scene And
Physical Evidence
High-tech Ways to See and Collect Evidence
Lelei Cheng
Technology has given the forensic science world many new worthwhile inventions. In the past, if evidence were found at a crime scene it would have to be sent to a lab in order to be examined. Presently, there are many new tools that enable us to do much more. One example would be the secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS) gun. The device works by blasting the surface of the evidence with large ions, lifting molecules from the surface and obtaining them for characterization. The SIMS gun could identify the evidence and recognize other chemicals on the surface of the evidence. Tools have also been created in order to help the police view things that cannot be seen by the human eye. A special camera was invented that separated the fluorescing wavelength of body fluid from the background of daylight. The invention would allow individuals to see fingerprints, semen, blood and other evidence. Further experiments still have to be done on the tools. Nevertheless, they still offer a future with less evidence contamination and conservation of time and money for many individuals.
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Goodman, Brenda Dekoker, March 1998, "Scene of the Crime",
Scientific American
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