Desorption electrospray ionization parameters

While the first instance of MS-based enantioselective discrimination was demonstrated by CI-MS, more recent work has focused on the use of fast atom bombardment (FAB), matrix-assisted laser desorption/ ionization (MALDI), and electrospray ionization (ESI) sources. All of these sources are considered to be soft-ionization sources due to the low internal energy they impart on a molecule as it is converted to a gas phase ion. The result is a lack of fragmentation, but in cases where source parameters are properly tuned, noncova-lent complexes can also be preserved from the condensed phase and transferred into the gas phase. 

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