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Mass Spectrometers

Mass Spectrometers

This lesson details the instrumentation of a mass spectrometer—a physical instrument to perform mass spectrometry on analyte molecules and record the characteristic mass spectra. This is achieved via three chief functions:

Mass Spectrum: Interpretation

Mass Spectrum: Interpretation

An unknown compound can be established by identifying the molecular ion peak in the mass spectrum. The molecular ion peak is often weak or absent due to the predominance of fragmentation in high-energy electron beams. In such cases, a soft-energy electron beam can be used to scan the spectrum to enhance the intensity of the molecular ion peak. Additionally, chemical ionization, field ionization, and desorption ionization spectra are used to obtain a relatively intense molecular ion peak.To...

MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

Mass spectrometry is a powerful characterization technique that can identify and separate a wide variety of compounds ranging from chemical to biological entities, based on their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z). The instruments that allow this detection, known as mass spectrometers, have three components: an ion source, a mass analyzer, and a detector. These spectrometers differ based on the nature of their ion source and analyzers.Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) is a commonly...

Mass Analyzers: Overview

Mass Analyzers: Overview

The mass analyzer is a crucial component of the mass spectrometer. In the ionization chamber, the vaporized sample is bombarded with a high-energy electron beam to generate a radical cation and further fragment into neutral molecules, radicals, and cations. A series of negatively charged accelerator plates accelerate the cations into the mass analyzer. The mass analyzer separates ions according to their mass-to-charge (m/z) ratios and then directs them to the detector. The common types of mass...

Mass Analyzers: Common Types

Mass Analyzers: Common Types

The quadrupole mass analyzer consists of four cylindrical metal rods arranged in a diamond carrying a DC voltage and a radio-frequency AC voltage. The motion of ions through the quadrupole depends on the field strength, causing only ions of a certain m/z to resonate successfully and strike the detector at a given field strength. Though the transmission rate for these analyzers is high, the exact elemental composition of the sample is not determined because of low resolution; however, they are...

Mass Spectrometry: Overview

Mass Spectrometry: Overview

Mass spectrometry is an analytical technique used to determine the molecular mass and molecular formula of a compound. The basic principle of mass spectrometry is to generate ions from the analyte molecule and measure these ion abundances against their molecular mass. One common type of ionization, known as electron ionization or EI, bombards the analyte molecules in the gas phase with high-energy electron beams. The electron beams displace an electron from the molecule and leave behind a...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Dithranol as a Matrix for Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging on a Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometer

Dithranol as a Matrix for Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging on a Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometer

Published on: November 26, 2013

Artifacts in Fourier transform mass spectrometry.

Raman Mathur¹, Peter B O'Connor

¹Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, 8 St. Mary's St., Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA.

Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry : RCM

|January 15, 2009

Summary

Artifact peaks in Fourier transform mass spectrometry arise from radio-frequency interference and signal saturation. These issues corrupt data by generating false signals through fast Fourier transform processing, impacting instruments like FTICRMS, orbitraps, and FT ion traps.

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Last Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Dithranol as a Matrix for Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging on a Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometer

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Published on: November 26, 2013

Photoelectron Imaging of Anions Illustrated by 310 Nm Detachment of F−

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Published on: July 27, 2018

T-wave Ion Mobility-mass Spectrometry: Basic Experimental Procedures for Protein Complex Analysis

T-wave Ion Mobility-mass Spectrometry: Basic Experimental Procedures for Protein Complex Analysis

Published on: July 31, 2010

Area of Science:

Analytical Chemistry
Spectrometry
Physical Chemistry

Background:

Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (FTICRMS) advancements aim for higher sensitivity.
New preamplifier designs can introduce spectral artifacts, complicating data interpretation.
Understanding these artifacts is crucial for accurate mass spectrometry analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

To identify the sources of artifact peaks observed in FTICRMS.
To correlate these artifacts with specific instrumental conditions and signal processing.
To provide insights for eliminating artifacts in FT-based mass spectrometry.

Main Methods:

Comparison of distorted FTICRMS spectra with distorted signal models.
Analysis of spectral features generated by fast Fourier transform (FFT) processing.
Correlation of artifacts with radio-frequency interference (RFI) and signal saturation.

Main Results:

Signal processing artifacts were identified and linked to RFI noise.
Amplifier and/or digitizer saturation were found to cause spectral distortions.
FFT processing under these conditions creates artifact peaks from real signals and RFI frequencies.

Conclusions:

Artifacts are inherent to the digitization and FFT process in FT-based mass spectrometry.
These findings are relevant to FTICRMS, orbitrap, and FT ion trap instruments.
Eliminating RFI and preventing saturation are key to mitigating spectral artifacts.