Observation and Identification of Ion Dissociation Processes Occurring in the Drift Tube of a Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer

摘要

The drift tube of a time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer can be used as the reaction/collision chamber for kinetic studies of ion dissociation, charge transfer, and similar processes. Selective flight-time shifts produced by means of flat-top potential barriers located within the otherwise field-free drift tube make it possible for product (fragment) and reactant (parent) ions involved in dissociations occurring in the drift tube to be separated, identified, and measured after exactly known reac¬tion times. An outline of the method and description of an instrument adapted to meet its requirements have been given in a previous publication. In this paper we describe and illustrate the use of this method to separate and identify the products of ion dissociation reactions.