A method of injecting ions into an electrostatic trap, comprising: generating ions in an ion source; transporting the ions from the ion source to an ion store downstream of the ion source; releasing the ions from the ion store to an ion guide downstream of the ion store; and accelerating the ions from the ion guide as a pulse into an orbital electrostatic trap for mass analysis, wherein the average velocity of the ions as the ions exit from the ion guide is substantially higher than the average velocity of the ions as they exit from the ion store, wherein there is a delay between releasing the ions from the ion store and accelerating the ions from the ion guide. Also an apparatus suitable for the method.

A device includes a first surface, a second surface and a controller. The second surface is adjacent to the first surface. The first and the second surfaces define a first ion channel therebetween. The first ion channel extends along a first direction. The second surface includes a first plurality of electrodes including a first electrode and a second electrode spaced apart from the first electrode along a second direction lateral to the first direction. The first plurality of electrodes extends along the first direction. The first electrode is configured to receive a first voltage signal and generate at least a portion of a pseudopotential that inhibits ions in the first ion channel from approaching the second surface. The second plurality of electrodes is located between the first electrode and the second electrode and arranged along the first direction. The second plurality of electrodes are configured to receive a second voltage signal to generate a first traveling drive potential that travels along the first direction. The first traveling drive potential is configured to guide ions along the first ion channel. The device further includes a controller electrically coupled to the first and the second surface. The controller is configured to generate the first voltage signal and the second voltage signal.

A method of introducing and ejecting ions from an ion entry/exit device (4) is disclosed. The ion entry/exit device (4) has at least two arrays of electrodes (20,22). The device is operated in a first mode wherein DC potentials are successively applied to successive electrodes of at least one of the electrode arrays ((20,22) in a first direction such that a potential barrier moves along the at least one array in the first direction and drives ions into and/or out of the device in the first direction. The device is also operated in a second mode, wherein DC potentials are successively applied to successive electrodes of at least one of the electrode arrays (20,22) in a second, different direction such that a potential barrier moves along the array in the second direction and drives ions into and/or out of the device in the second direction. The device provides a single, relatively simple device for manipulating ions in multiple directions. For example, the device may be used to load ions into or eject ions from an ion mobility separator in a first direction, and may then be used to cause ions to move through the ion mobility separator in the second direction so as to cause the ions to separate.

A mass spectrometer includes an ion source, an ion guide, a quadrupole mass filter, a detector, DC and RF power sources, and a voltage control device for controlling an acceleration voltage by controlling the power source. The voltage controller controls the acceleration voltage such that it is increased as the mass-to-charge ratio of ions to be measured is increased within a control region. The control region is surrounded, having one coordinate axis representing the mass-to-charge ratio of the ions passing the ion guide and another axis representing the acceleration voltage applied to the ion guide, by a line representing a lower limit of a stable region where the ions pass the ion guide stably, a line representing an ion mobility of the ions, an upper side representing an upper limit of the acceleration voltage, and a lower side representing a value at which the acceleration voltage is zero.

An ion analyzer including: a base member fixed to a ion outflow port and having a cylindrical concave part; a cylindrical first conductive member accommodated in the concave part; a first ion flow controller fixed to an exposed end of the first conductive member; a cylindrical insulating member inserted into the first conductive member; a rod-shaped second conductive member inserted into the insulating member; a second ion flow controller being fixed to an exposed end of the second conductive member; a first power feeding unit that, when accommodated in the concave part, comes into contact with the first conductive member; and a second power feeding unit that, when accommodated in the concave part, comes into contact with the second conductive member when the first conductive member accommodates the second conductive member and the insulating member.

Measurement of a standard sample is repeated under control of an analysis control unit (94) while a CD voltage applied to a conversion dynode (61) of a detection unit (6) is gradually changed by a CD voltage adjustment unit (96). Then, every time a measured mass spectrum is obtained, a spectrum pattern determination unit (93) determines whether a pattern of the measured mass spectrum matches a pattern of a standard mass spectrum of a standard sample in a compound database (92), and determines the CD voltage at the time of being regarded as matching to be the set value. When the pattern of the mass spectrum is adjusted by changing the voltage applied to the ion lens (3), performance such as sensitivity is likely to be unstable due to stain on the lens electrode or the like, but since the detection unit (6) is unlikely to be affected by such a stain, unstable performance can be avoided.

An ion manipulation method and device is disclosed. The device includes a pair of substantially parallel surfaces. An array of inner electrodes is contained within, and extends substantially along the length of, each parallel surface. The device includes a first outer array of electrodes and a second outer array of electrodes. Each outer array of electrodes is positioned on either side of the inner electrodes, and is contained within and extends substantially along the length of each parallel surface. A DC voltage is applied to the first and second outer array of electrodes. A RF voltage, with a superimposed electric field, is applied to the inner electrodes by applying the DC voltages to each electrode. Ions either move between the parallel surfaces within an ion confinement area or along paths in the direction of the electric field, or can be trapped in the ion confinement area.

The invention relates to methods and instruments for combined separation of ions according to mobility and mass to charge ratio. The mass spectrometric system comprises an ion source, a mobility separator and a mass analyzer wherein the mobility separator comprises (i) a gas filled drift region with a substantially constant electric DC field or a traveling electric field and (ii) an ion storage located adjacent to the entrance or inside the drift region. The ion storage comprises an electric field gradient and a gas flow wherein the electric field gradient and gas flow provide opposing forces on ions in the ion storage such that they are trapped at mobility dependent positions inside the ion storage.

A mass spectrometer is disclosed comprising two vacuum chambers maintained at different pressures. The two vacuum chambers are interconnected by a differential pumping aperture. The effective area of the opening between the two vacuum chambers may be varied by rotating a disk having an aperture in front of the differential pumping aperture so as to vary the gas flow rate through the opening and between the two chambers.

An analytical device for analysing ions is provided comprising a separator 2 for separating ions according to a physico-chemical property and an interface 3 comprising one or more ion guides. A quadrupole rod set mass filter 4 is arranged downstream of the interface 3. A control system is arranged and adapted: (i) to transmit a first group of ions which emerges from the separator 2 through the interface 3 with a first transit time t1; and (ii) to transmit a second group of ions which subsequently emerges from the separator 2 through the interface 3 with a second different transit time t2.