Dh Technologies Development Pte. Ltd.

Mds Inc.

John J Corr

Thomas R Covey

Peter Kovarik

Bradley B Schneider

Jan Hendrikse

Michael Bailey

William H Fisher

Chau Tung

Brett Barnett

An electrospray ionization emitter according to various aspects described herein can include an emitter body formed using fused silica. The emitter body can comprise a fluid conduit segment that includes a liquid connection end that has been coated with polyetheretherketone (PEEK) on at least one portion thereof. The liquid connection end can have a first outer diameter that is configured to be connected to a sample source to receive a sample liquid for ionization therefrom. The emitter body can further comprise an ionization discharge segment that is fluidly connected to the fluid conduit segment. The ionization discharge segment can have an ionization discharge end that is coated with a conductive material on at least one portion thereof and configured to have a second outer diameter that allows ionization of the liquid sample.

Integrated electrospray emitter and methods for making same

In one aspect, an ion source for use in a mass spectrometry system is disclosed, which comprises a housing, a first and a second ion probe coupled to said housing, and a first and a second emitter configured for coupling, respectively, to said first and second ion probes. The first ion probe is configured for receiving a sample at a flow rate in nanoflow regime and the second ion probe is configured for receiving a sample at a flow rate above the nanoflow regime. Each of the ion probes includes a discharge end (herein also referred to as the discharge tip) for ionizing at least one constituent of the received sample. In some embodiment, each ion probe receives the sample from a liquid chromatography (LC) column. Further, the ion probes can be interchangeably disposed within the housing.

Integrated electrospray ion source

Methods and systems are provided for reducing the occurrence of unwanted electrical discharge when operating an electrospray ion source to generate ions for mass spectrometric analysis. In accordance with various aspects of the applicant's teachings, the methods and systems described herein can provide for controlling the ion emission current so as to limit the onset of avalanche of electrical discharge between the electrospray electrode and the counter electrode under ionization conditions that typically tend to increase the likelihood of such discharge (arcing), while nonetheless providing for maximal ionization efficiency. In various aspects, emission currents between the electrospray electrode and the counter electrode through which the ions are transmitted to a downstream mass analyzer can be maintained at elevated levels, below 10 &#x3bc;A, for example, without the electric potential between the electrospray electrode and the counter electrode initiating the electrical discharge avalanche that results from the dielectric breakdown of the air gap therebetween, which can cause sputtering and effect the long-term operation of the ESI source.

System for minimizing electrical discharge during ESI operation

An apparatus and method is disclosed for reducing contamination in a mass spectrometer instrument system. The system includes an ion source at a first pressure for generating ions by laser desorption/ionization and an inlet aperture to a vacuum chamber at a second, lower pressure than the first pressure of the ion source. A sample plate within the ion source supports a sample deposited thereon and a laser can be configured to generate laser pulses striking at least a portion of the sample at an angle of incidence from about 0 to about 80 degrees to the center line of a first ion optical axis of a mass analyzer, producing a plume. A combination of the angle of incidence of the laser pulses and the distance between the sample plate and the inlet region aperture can reduce neutral contaminants in the plume from being drawn into the inlet aperture.

Method and apparatus for generating ions for mass analysis

A mass spectrometry quantitation technique enables high-throughput quantitation of small molecules using a laser-desorption (e.g., MALDI) ion source coupled to a triple-quadrupole mass analyzer. The ions generated from the ion source are collisionally damped/cooled, and then quantitatively analyzed using the triple-quadrupole analyzer operated in the multiple-reaction-monitoring (MRM) mode. Significantly improved measurement sensitivity is obtained by applying laser pulses to the ion source at a high pulse rate of about 500 Hz or higher. This allows the data acquisition to be performed rapidly, and the speed of about one second for each sample point on the ion source target has been achieved.

Growing community of inventors

Richmond Hill, Canada

John J Corr