Mass spectrometry sources

Alexander, J. N., Schultz, G. A., and Polll, J. B. (1998). Development of a nano-electrospray mass spectrometry source for nanoscale liquid chromatography and sheathless capillary electrophoresis. Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 12, 1187—1191. 

Arscott, S., Le Gac, S., and Rolando, C. (2005). A polysilicon nanoelectrospray-mass spectrometry source based on a microfluldlc capillary slot. Sens. Actuators B Chem. B106, 741—749. 

As in the sources used in optical atomic spectrometry a considerable ionization takes place, they are also of use as ion sources for mass spectrometry. Although an overall treatment of instrumentation for mass spectrometry is given in other textbooks [68], the most common types of mass spectrometers will be briefly outlined here. In particular, the new types of elemental mass spectrometry sources have to be considered, namely the glow discharges and the inductively and eventually the microwave plasmas. In contrast with classical high voltage spark mass spectrometry (for a review see Ref. [69]) or thermionic mass spectrometry (see e.g. Ref. [70]), the plasma sources mentioned are operated at a pressure which is considerably... 

D. B. Aeschliman, S. J. Bajic, J. Stanley, D. Baldwin, and R. S. Houk, Multivariate pattern matching of trace elements in solids by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry source attribution and preliminary diagnosis of fractionation, Anal. Chem. 76, 3119-3125 (2004). 

Burlingame, A.L. Comparison of Three Geometries for a Cesium Primary Beam Liquid Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Source. Anal. Chem. 1984, 56, 2915-2918. 

Before ehding this presentation on mass spectrometry, we should cite the existence of spectrometers for which the method of sorting ions coming from the source is different from the magnetic sector. These are mainly quadripolar analyzers and, to a lesser degree, analyzers measuring the ion s time of flight. 

In contrast to IR and NMR spectroscopy, the principle of mass spectrometry (MS) is based on decomposition and reactions of organic molecules on theii way from the ion source to the detector. Consequently, structure-MS correlation is basically a matter of relating reactions to the signals in a mass spectrum. The chemical structure information contained in mass spectra is difficult to extract because of the complicated relationships between MS data and chemical structures. The aim of spectra evaluation can be either the identification of a compound or the interpretation of spectral data in order to elucidate the chemical structure [78-80],... 

Following the movement of airborne pollutants requires a natural or artificial tracer (a species specific to the source of the airborne pollutants) that can be experimentally measured at sites distant from the source. Limitations placed on the tracer, therefore, governed the design of the experimental procedure. These limitations included cost, the need to detect small quantities of the tracer, and the absence of the tracer from other natural sources. In addition, aerosols are emitted from high-temperature combustion sources that produce an abundance of very reactive species. The tracer, therefore, had to be both thermally and chemically stable. On the basis of these criteria, rare earth isotopes, such as those of Nd, were selected as tracers. The choice of tracer, in turn, dictated the analytical method (thermal ionization mass spectrometry, or TIMS) for measuring the isotopic abundances of... 

The main difference between field ionization (FI) and field desorption ionization (FD) lies in the manner in which the sample is examined. For FI, the substance under investigation is heated in a vacuum so as to volatilize it onto an ionization surface. In FD, the substance to be examined is placed directly onto the surface before ionization is implemented. FI is quite satisfactory for volatile, thermally stable compounds, but FD is needed for nonvolatile and/or thermally labile substances. Therefore, most FI sources are arranged to function also as FD sources, and the technique is known as FI/FD mass spectrometry. 

The various stages of this process depend critically on the type of gas, its pressure, and the configuration of the electrodes. (Their distance apart and their shapes control the size and shape of the applied electric field.) By controlling the various parameters, the discharge can be made to operate as a corona, a plasma, or an arc at atmospheric pressure. All three discharges can be used as ion sources in mass spectrometry. 

Another type of ion is formed almost uniquely by the electrospray inlet/ion source which makes this technique so valuable for examining substances such as proteins that have large relative molecular mass. Measurement of m/z ratios usually gives a direct measure of mass for most mass spectrometry because z = 1 and so m/z = m/1 = m. Values of z greater than one are unusual. However, for electrospray, values of z greater than one (often much greater), are quite coimnonplace. For example, instead of the [M + H]+ ions common in simple Cl, ions in electrospray can be [M + n-H]- where n can be anything from 1 to about 30. 

In many applications in mass spectrometry (MS), the sample to be analyzed is present as a solution in a solvent, such as methanol or acetonitrile, or an aqueous one, as with body fluids. The solution may be an effluent from a liquid chromatography (LC) column. In any case, a solution flows into the front end of a mass spectrometer, but before it can provide a mass spectrum, the bulk of the solvent must be removed without losing the sample (solute). If the solvent is not removed, then its vaporization as it enters the ion source would produce a large increase in pressure and stop the spectrometer from working. At the same time that the solvent is removed, the dissolved sample must be retained so that its mass spectrum can be measured. There are several means of effecting this differentiation between carrier solvent and the solute of interest, and thermospray is just one of them. Plasmaspray is a variant of thermospray in which the basic method of solvent removal is the same, but the number of ions obtained is enhanced (see below). 

Until about the 1990s, visible light played little intrinsic part in the development of mainstream mass spectrometry for analysis, but, more recently, lasers have become very important as ionization and ablation sources, particularly for polar organic substances (matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization, MALDI) and intractable solids (isotope analysis), respectively. 

The term nebulizer is used generally as a description for any spraying device, such as the hair spray mentioned above. It is normally applied to any means of forming an aerosol spray in which a volume of liquid is broken into a mist of vapor and small droplets and possibly even solid matter. There is a variety of nebulizer designs for transporting a solution of analyte in droplet form to a plasma torch in ICP/MS and to the inlet/ionization sources used in electrospray and mass spectrometry (ES/MS) and atmospheric-pressure chemical ionization and mass spectrometry (APCI/MS). 

When mass spectrometry was first used as a routine analytical tool, El was the only commercial ion source. As needs have increased, more ionization methods have appeared. Many different types of ionization source have been described, and several of these have been produced commercially. The present situation is such that there is now only a limited range of ion sources. For vacuum ion sources, El is still widely used, frequently in conjunction with Cl. For atmospheric pressure ion sources, the most frequently used are ES, APCI, MALDI (lasers), and plasma torches. 

Plasma torches and thermal ionization sources break down the substances into atoms and ionized atoms. Both are used for measurement of accurate isotope ratios. In the breakdown process, all structural information is lost, other than an identification of elements present (e.g., as in inductively coupled mass spectrometry, ICP/MS). 

Ions for TOF mass spectrometry must be extracted from the ion source in instantaneous pulses. Therefore, either ions are produced continuously but are extracted from the source in pulses, or ions are produced directly in pulses. 

SRM. selected reaction monitoring SSMS. spark source mass spectrometry... 

Holland, J.G. and Eaton, A., Applications of Plasma Source Mass Spectrometry, The Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, 1991. 

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