A new instrument that combines ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) separations with tandem mass spectrometry (MS(n)) is described. Ion fragmentation is achieved with vacuum ultraviolet photodissociation (VUV PD) and/or collision-induced dissociation (CID). The instrument is comprised of an approximately 1 m long drift tube connected to a linear trap that has been interfaced to a pulsed F(2) laser (157 nm). Ion gates positioned in the front and the back of the primary drift region allow for mobility selection of specific ions prior to their storage in the ion trap, mass analysis, and fragmentation. The ion characterization advantages of the new instrument are demonstrated with the analysis of the isomeric trisaccharides, melezitose and raffinose. Mobility separation of precursor ions provides a means of separating the isomers and subsequent VUV PD generates unique fragments allowing them to be distinguished. 相似文献
The discontinuous atmospheric pressure interface (DAPI) has been developed as a facile means for efficiently introducing ions generated at atmospheric pressure to an ion trap in vacuum [e.g., a rectilinear ion trap (RIT)] for mass analysis. Introduction of multiple beams of ions or neutral species through two DAPIs into a single RIT has been previously demonstrated. In this study, a home-built instrument with a DAPI-RIT-DAPI configuration has been characterized for the study of gas-phase ion/molecule and ion/ion reactions. The reaction species, including ions or neutrals, can be introduced from both ends of the RIT through the two DAPIs without complicated ion optics or differential pumping stages. The primary reactant ions were isolated prior to reaction and the product ions were mass analyzed after controlled reaction time period. Ion/molecule reactions involving peptide radical ions and proton-transfer ion/ion reactions have been carried out using this instrument. The gas dynamic effect due to the DAPI operation on internal energy deposition and the reactivity of peptide radical ions has been characterized. The DAPI-RIT-DAPI system also has a unique feature for allowing the ion reactions to be carried out at significantly elevated pressures (in 10–1 Torr range), which has been found to be helpful to speed up the reactions. The viability and flexibility of the DAPI-RIT-DAPI system for the study of gas-phase ion reactions have been demonstrated.
Gaussian distribution has been utilized to describe the global number density distribution of ion cloud in the Paul trap, which is known as the thermal equilibrium theory and widely used in theoretical modeling of ion clouds in the ion traps. Using ion trajectory simulations, however, the ion clouds can now also be treated as a dynamic ion flow field and the location-dependent features could now be characterized. This study was carried out to better understand the in-trap ion cloud properties, such as the local particle velocity and temperature. The local ion number densities were found to be heterogeneously distributed in terms of mean and distribution width; the velocity and temperature of the ion flow varied with pressure depending on the flow type of the neutral molecules; and the “quasi-static” equilibrium status can only be achieved after a certain number of collisions, for which the time period is pressure-dependent. This work provides new insights of the ion clouds that are globally stable but subjected to local rf heating and collisional cooling.
