Motion of the charged droplets and ions in mass spectrometers

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This proposal is aimed at improving sensitivity of mass spectrometers (MS). This will be achieved by modeling the ion flow through various parts of a MS which are responsible for ion formation and transportation. The objective is to improve the ion current in order to minimize losses and maximize quality. We will use a combination of gas flow drag and electric field to model the ionic motion. We anticipate significant improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio, thereby enabling substantially lower levels of quantization. We also anticipate development of new technologies in the mass spectrometry based on the ion motion control, using both flow and electric field. This project is in collaboration with Ionics Mass Spectrometry Group Inc. The results of this study will potentially allow Ionics to secure an industry lead positioned as the only manufacturer of a highly sensitive MS. Their customers would benefit by using much smaller samples and increasing their throughput. The public sector benefits as laboratories are able to deliver health results faster and more frequently, leading to higher quality control on ingestible consumables, such as drugs, food, beverages, and environmental protection.