DRIFT TUBES, ION MOBILITY SPECTROMETERS SYSTEMS, AND METHODS OF CLASSIFYING CHARGED PARTICLES

摘要

Ion mobility spectrometers and drift tubes including an inlet configured to receive ions, and an outlet, and an internal portion having a pressure at about atmospheric pressure, wherein the drift tube is configured to separate ions using a convective velocity from a carrier gas that transports the ions from the inlet to the outlet, a second controllable velocity that alters a migration of the ions from the inlet to the outlet, and neither radio frequency (RF) nor an alternating current (AC) center the ions are disclosed. Methods of separating charged particles are also disclosed.