Methods and systems for controlling ion contamination

Abstract

Because most ion optics of mass spectrometry systems are subject to ion deposition and may exhibit significantly different behavior following substantial contamination (e.g., loss of sensitivity), fouled surfaces must be regularly cleaned to maintain sensitivity. While the surfaces of front-end components (e.g., curtain plates, orifice plates, Qjet, Q, IQ) may be relatively easy to clean, the fouling of components contained within the downstream high-vacuum chambers (e.g., Q, IQ) can incur substantial delays and expense as the high-vacuum chambers must be vented and substantially disassembled prior to cleaning. Methods and systems for controlling contamination of components of mass spectrometer systems are provided herein. By reducing the transmission of contaminating ions during non-data acquisition periods, the present teachings can increase throughput, improve robustness, and/or decrease the downtime typically required to vent/disassemble/clean the fouled components.