Developments toward field portable ion traps
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)
Ion traps mass spectrometers, because of their small size and weight, simple analyzer design and low power requirements, are uniquely suited for development as field portable instruments. Furthermore, the inherent high sensitivity of ion traps and ability to perform multiple stages of mass spectrometry (MS{sup n}) in a single analyzer give these devices additional desirable features. Significant advances have recently been made by commercial suppliers of ion traps which combine MS/MS capabilities and new ionization methods in smaller, bench-top instruments. Commercial, laboratory based ion traps, however, still require the use of a 1 millitor helium buffer gas in order to improve the sensitivity and resolution of the instrument. This operational limitation not only adds complexity to the instrument, but also imposes restrictions on the size and type of vacuum systems employed. In order to move ion traps out of the laboratory and into the field, it is important to reduce or eliminate support utilities which consume excessive power or require bulky support apparatus. This presentation describes recent studies which have demonstrated that operating conditions exist that allow air to be used as the buffer gas with only small reductions in performance for ions with m/z values less than 200 daltons. This work and other efforts underway in our laboratory are aimed at developing a fully capable and truly man-portable ion trap mass spectrometer.
- OSTI ID:
- 466575
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-951017--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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