Fundamental aspects of FT-ICR and applications to chemistry

Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) spectroscopy, a modern form of mass spectrometry whose advantages were first demonstrated in our laboratory in 1974, is characterized by ultrahigh mass resolution, wide mass range, high speed and automatic mass calibration. Together with the FT-ICR double resonance experiment, these advantages make FT-ICR a powerful technique for studying complex ion/molecule reaction pathways and for general problems in analytical mass spectrometry. In addition, the high resolution principles of FT-ICR have been widely adopted around the world for precise mass measurements of nuclides.