Ion mobility separator for mass spectrometers

• Main Authors: Melvin Andrew Park, Desmond Allen Kaplan, Mark Ridgeway
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 29.11.2017
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS; ELECTRICITY; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; MEASURING; PHYSICS; TESTING

The invention relates to the selection and separation of ions with predetermined ion mobilities, preferably for mass spectrometric analysis. The invention provides devices and methods for these separations, either by the collection and temporal storage of many ions with predetermined mobility, or by filtering the ions according to their mobility, thus producing a constant beam of ions with predetermined ion mobilities. The invention is based on at least two consecutive ion mobility high pass and/or low pass filters, formed each by the action of a moving gas with its friction force and a counter-directed DC electric field on the ions. An ion mobility high pass filter can be formed by a DC electric force field driving in the ions from an ion source against a flow of gas, whereas an ion mobility low pass filter may be formed by a flow of gas driving entrained ions from an ion source against a DC electric field barrier.