For hard-to-reach spots, the vehicle's ChemCam uses a laser to vaporize thin layers of rock.
WSJ: Curiosity, the New Mars Rover | Visualizer
2.
The results of the investigation by APXS, and the rover's laser instrument, ChemCam, revealed the rock to be anything but dull.
BBC: Cosmic coincidence on the road to Glenelg
3.
This outcrop contains yet finer grains but it is cut through with veins that the rover's ChemCam laser spectrometer indicates hold precipitated minerals - most likely hydrated calcium sulphate, possibly bassinite or gypsum.