Laser-ablation atomic fluorescence (LAAF) spectroscopy has extremely high sensitivity in the analysis of trace elements. Using the ArF laser-ablation technique at a wavelength of 193 nm, removal of thin surface layer of the order of 1.1 nm/shot for the first 50 shots and 0.4 nm/shot after that is demonstrated for a solid glass sample. A constant fluorescence signal from Na atoms is obtained for each shot. There is a possibility of determining the depth distribution of an element with subnanometer resolution by applying LAAF spectroscopy. ©1997 American Institute of Physics.