Forensic science practitioners in both domestic and Department of Defense organizations are often called upon to build cases and attribute crimes using trace evidence remaining at a crime scene. The ultimate goal of these investigations is to associate a crime with a suspect or suspects in order to prevent further... Read More

• Invited Session

Prevailing methods of trace evidence analysis have been limited by (1) difficulties in measurement of probative value, (2) increased specialization, focusing on smaller numbers of particle types, in correspondingly smaller numbers of cases, and (3) relatively long analytical times and high levels of effort for required tasks. Solutions are elusive,... Read More

• Invited Session

A light emitting diode (LED) based reader system has been designed and built to collect near-infrared emissions from upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) used to develop fingerprints. A complete system is essential because the UCNPs emit light at 800 nm, a region that is normally filtered out by visible cameras. The reader... Read More

• Invited Session

Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a promising analytical technique to obtain chemical information of fingerprints thanks to its high sensitivity, label-free detection, and unbiased molecular characterization. Triacylglycerol (TG) is a major class of endogenous compounds in fingerprints and is readily detected in matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI)-MSI analysis. The analysis... Read More

• Invited Session

The analysis of lubricants used in sexual assaults is a growing field in forensic science. Current methods primarily focus on identifying common lubricant components, e.g. polydimethylsiloxane, polyethylene glycol, spermicides and cornstarch. Recently, the discussion of evaluating other lubricant components that can be used for comparison and individualization purposes of a... Read More

• Invited Session

The performance of a SERS based platform for forensic science investigations, both at crime scenes and in the laboratory, is shown to provide improved rapid identification of trace amounts of body fluids, such as blood, semen, vaginal fluid and saliva, with unprecedented sensitivity and specificity. Techniques and instrumentation for obtaining... Read More

• Invited Session

Identifying the body fluid left at a crime scene is an important component in forensic science, as knowing what is the body fluid at many times is the key in a criminal investigation and what is considered in court. While tests for detection of body fluids are available, they have... Read More

• Invited Session

The human virome offers advantages, as viral genomes are even smaller than those of bacteria, and thus are potentially more stable. They are present throughout the human body, including the skin and body fluids, making them transferrable. The copy number of viral genomes in a given volume is substantially higher... Read More

• Invited Session