  A laser ion source is under development at the IGISOL facility, Jyvaskyla, in
order to address deficiencies in the ion guide technique. The key elements of
interest are those of a refractory nature, whose isotopes and isomers are
widely studied using both laser spectroscopic and high precision mass
measurement techniques. Yttrium has been the first element of choice for the
new laser ion source. In this work we present a new coupled dye-Ti:Sapphire
laser scheme and give a detailed discussion of the results obtained from laser
ionization of yttrium atoms produced in an ion guide via joule heating of a
filament. The importance of not only gas purity, but indeed the baseline vacuum
pressure in the environment outside the ion guide is discussed in light of the
fast gas phase chemistry seen in the yttrium system. A single laser shot model
is introduced and is compared to the experimental data in order to extract the
level of impurities within the gas cell.
