A sample transfer apparatus atomizer connected via tube to a sample receiver for micro-sampling. The sample receiver has a funnel-shaped upward opening and is connected to the tube at the base of the funnel. A control unit controls the apparatus to make sure that the sample injected into the sample receiver will be so positioned in the tube that a quantity of solvent is positioned nearer to the vaporizer than the sample, and preferably another quantity of solvent is positioned nearer to the side of the sample receiver relative to the sample. The presence of solvent in the tube positioned nearer to the vaporizer than the sample delays the sample being sucked by the vaporizer, this preventing interruption of the sample flow in the tube and making the atomic absorption waveform more stable.