Reston Stable Isotope Lab Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for Lasers & Light Stable Isotopes

LIMS for Lasers & Light Stable Isotopes is the Laboratory Information Management System used by the RESTON STABLE ISOTOPE LABORATORY (RSIL)

LIMS for Lasers 2015

LIMS for Lasers 2015 is a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for off-axis (OA-ICOS) and cavity ring-down (CRDS) laser absorption spectrometers (LAS) for δ²H, δ¹⁸O, and δ¹⁷O measurements of liquid water. LIMS for Lasers provides a convenient Windows environment to manage clients, projects, samples, and instrument data. 



Key Features

• Full client, project and sample management and reporting system
• LAS sample analysis and lab standard calibration templates
• Automated between-sample memory corrections
• Automated instrumental drift correction and outlier identification
• Automated adjustment for variation in δ with variation in relative water concentration
• Automated normalization of data to the VSMOW-SLAP scales making use of user's isotopic reference waters or RSIL reference waters
• Track My Lab QA/QC for instrument and laboratory assessment
• Excel client sample submission templates

User Benefits

• Increased laboratory productivity by eliminating complex spreadsheets
• Improved long-term performance through standardized approaches
• Reduction of laboratory error in client and data management
• Fully compatible with LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes

New Feature in LIMS for Lasers 2015

• LIMS for Lasers 2015 now imports δ¹⁷O measurements simultaneously with δ²H and δ¹⁸O results.
• LIMS for Lasers can adjust for variation in δ with variation in relative water concentration that can result in substantially improved precision and accuracy for δ¹⁸O and δ²H measurements of waters. Variable sample water amounts in laser spectrometers typically result from underperforming high-precision syringes, and this can adversely affect isotopic results. By purposely adding groups of reference waters having different injection volumes, linear isotopic response corrections can be automatically applied to the samples using LIMS for Lasers. This feature is of benefit for both earlier generation instruments and the newest Los Gatos Research instruments and Picarro instruments.

LIMS for Lasers is built upon the Microsoft Access code of LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes and can be used concurrently on an existing back-end database. This software is a result of a collaborative effort between the IAEA Isotope Hydrology Laboratory and the U.S. Geological Survey. Currently, OA-ICOS instrumentation is offered by Los Gatos Research Inc. and CRDS instrumentation is offered by Picarro Inc.

Obtaining LIMS for Lasers 2015

• Latest Manual, in pdf format (8.0 MB)
• Spanish Language LIMS for Lasers Manual, in pdf format (7.0 MB)
• French Language LIMS for Lasers Manual, in pdf format (7.9 MB)
• Russian Language LIMS for Lasers Manual, in pdf format (7.0 MB)
• Latest Front End, for use under Microsoft Office 2010 (32-bit only) or Office 2007 (Note, LIMS is not compatible with 64-bit Microsoft Office 2010), in ZIP format (4 MB)
• Latest Back-end Database for Los Gatos Research instruments, in ZIP format (0.25 MB)
• Latest Back-end Database for Picarro instruments, in ZIP format (0.25 MB)
• Latest IAEA Excel water sample submission file, in ZIP format (0.2 MB)
• Latest Alternative Excel water sample submission file, in ZIP format (0.2 MB)

LIMS Data Viewer

The U.S. Geological Survey has partnered with the IAEA Isotope Hydrology Laboratory (IHL) to offer LIMS Data Viewer, an optional companion utility to LIMS for Lasers that can be used in trusted teams, departmental settings, or laboratory group settings. This utility allows network-connected laboratory clients (e.g. co-workers, colleagues, managers) to have read-only access to the LIMS for Lasers backend database from their desktops, but without any capacity to edit or alter information in the database. 



Key Features

• View and extract current laboratory workload and client projects
• View their projects and analysis status
• Download or export their project data to Excel or print a report
• Reduce need for phoning the laboratory concerning sample or project status

Obtaining LIMS Data Viewer

• Latest Front End, for use under Microsoft Office 2010 (32-bit only) or Office 2007 (Note, LIMS is not compatible with 64-bit Microsoft Office 2010), in ZIP format (1.6 MB)

LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes

LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes is a mature LIMS for isotope-ratio mass spectrometers (IRMSs), and it has proven useful in laboratories that receive samples from numerous individuals or perform at least a few thousand isotopic analyses per year. 



Key Features

• All the features of LIMS for Lasers listed above
• Developed for a variety of media (carbonates, sulfates, nitrates, gases, etc.)
• Compatible with all IRMS software such as ISODAT, MassLynx, IonVantage, VG Optima/Prism, Nu Instruments, etc.

Obtaining LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes

The LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes User Manual with accompanying demonstration files contains a wealth of information. New users of LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes should benefit greatly by consulting it first. 

 

• Latest User Manual, in pdf format (13 MB)
• Demonstration Files for User Manual, in ZIP format (12 MB)
• Latest Front End for Office 2007 or later (32-bit only), in ZIP format (5 MB)
• Latest Back-end Database, in ZIP format (0.3 MB)
• Example Sample Submission Excel file with new (2012) country/location and state/province codes, in ZIP format (0.2 MB)

LIMS for Light Stable Isotopes optimized for heavy elements (strontium, boron, calcium, chromium, and barium isotopes) is available upon request.

Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.