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Mass spectrometry is an analytical technique used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. It is most generally used to find the composition of a physical sample by generating a mass spectrum representing the masses of sample components. The technique has several applications, including:

  • identifying unknown compounds by the mass of the compound molecules or their fragments
  • determining the isotopic composition of elements in a compound
  • determining the structure of a compound by observing its fragmentation
  • quantifying the amount of a compound in a sample using carefully designed methods (mass spectrometry is not inherently quantitative)
  • studying the fundamentals of gas phase ion chemistry (the chemistry of ions and neutrals in vacuum)
  • determining other physical, chemical or even biological properties of compounds with a variety of other approaches

A mass spectrometer is a device used for mass spectrometry, and produces a mass spectrum of a sample to find its composition. This is normally achieved by ionizing the sample and separating ions of differing masses and recording their relative abundance by measuring intensities of ion flux. A typical mass spectrometer comprises three parts: an ion source, a mass analyzer, and a detector.

How it works: simple example


Different chemicals have different masses, and this fact is used in a mass spectrometer to determine what chemicals are present in a sample. For example, table salt (NaCl), is vaporized (turned into gas) and ionized (broken down) into electrically charged particles, called ions, in the first phase of the mass spectrometry. The sodium ions and chloride ions have specific atomic weights. They also have a charge, which means that their path can be controlled with an electric or magnetic fields. The ions are sent into an acceleration chamber and passed through a slit in a metal sheet. A magnetic field is applied to the chamber. The field pulls each ion with equal force and deflects them (makes them curve instead of travelling straight) onto a detector. The lighter ions deflect farther than the heavy ions because according to the Newton's second law of motion the acceleration of a particle is inversely proportional to its mass. The detector measures exactly how far each ion has been deflected, and from this measurement, the ion's 'mass to charge ratio' can be worked out. From this information it is possible to determine with a high level of certainty the chemical composition of the original sample.

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