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UK scientists develop new fingerprinting technique |
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08:02, August 03, 2007 |
British scientists have developed a new fingerprinting technique that could potentially detect the diet, race and sex of a suspected criminal.
A research team, led by Sergei Kazarian from Imperial College London''s Department of Chemical Engineering, has devised the technique which collects fingerprints along with their chemical residue and keeps them intact for future reference, according to a report Thursday on the science news website of AlphaGalileo.
The scientists found that the use of gel tapes -- commercial gelatine based tape -- provides a simple method for collection and transportation of prints for chemical imaging analysis.
The prints, once lifted, are analyzed in a spectroscopic microscope. The sample is irradiated with infrared rays to identify individual molecules within the print to give a detailed chemical composition.
The information is then processed by an infrared array detector, originally developed by the U.S. military in smart missile technology, which chemically maps the residue.
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