A method of manufacturing a multipole device includes the steps of: (a) forming an intermediate device by assembling a plurality of components including a plurality of precursor multipole electrodes, wherein the plurality of precursor multipole electrodes in the assembled device extend along and are distributed around a central axis; (b) forming a multipole device from the intermediate device by machining the precursor multipole electrodes within the intermediate device to provide a plurality of multipole electrodes having a predetermined spatial relationship; wherein a first component of the multipole device that includes a multipole electrode is attached non-permanently to a second component of the multipole device, the first component including a first alignment formation, and the second component including a second alignment portion configured to engage with the first alignment formation on the first component so as to facilitate alignment of the first component and the second component when the first component and the second component are attached, thereby allowing the first component to be detached from and then reattached to the second component while retaining the predetermined spatial relationship between the plurality of multipole electrodes.

A method of mass spectrometry is disclosed comprising automatically correcting the mass or mass to charge ratio resolution of a quadrupole mass filter or mass analyser one or more times during an experimental run or acquisition based upon a measurement, determination or estimation of the mass or mass to charge ratio resolution of one or more reference ions observed in a mass spectrum or mass spectral data acquired either during the same experimental run or acquisition or during a previous experimental run or acquisition.

In some embodiments, a method for optimizing performance of a mass spectrometer comprises using an ion source to generate ions, collisionally cooling the ions within an ion guide, directing said ions from the ion guide through at least one ion lens to a downstream mass analyzer, ramping a DC voltage applied to the ion lens, performing a mass analysis of the ions within the mass analyzer while the DC voltage applied to the ion lens is ramped, estimating performance of the mass spectrometer by measuring one or more characteristics of at least one of an ion signal and the voltage ramp, and adjusting a DC voltage applied to said at least one lens element based on said measured one or more characteristics of at least one of the ion signal and the voltage ramp so as to enhance performance of the mass spectrometer.

Mass separators are provided that can include at least one electrode component having a surface, in one cross section, defining at least two runs associated via at least one rise, the rise being orthogonally related to the runs. Mass selective detectors are provided that can include at least a first pair of opposing electrodes with each of the opposing electrodes having a complimentary surface, in one cross section, defining at least two runs associated via a rise. Methods for optimizing mass separation within a mass selective detector are also provided, including providing mass separation parameters; providing one set electrodes within the separator having a surface operatively aligned within the separator, the surface, in one cross section, defining at least two runs associated via a rise, the rise being orthogonally related to the runs; and modifying one or both of the rise and/or runs to achieve the mass separation parameters.

An ion mobility separator includes an ion path with a central axis along which ions travel, the ion path containing a gas. A first force is applied to the ions in a first axial direction, and a second force that varies spatially along the ion path is applied to the ions in second axial direction opposite the first axial direction. A rotating confinement field has a radially-inhomogeneous electric potential with relative maxima and minima that rotate about the central axis as a function of time, the confinement field exerting a radial confinement force on the ions in a radial direction toward the central axis. The ion mobility separator may be operated at elevated pressures including ambient pressure and higher. The first and/or second axial forces may be a constant or gradient gas flow, a constant or gradient electric field or an axial component of the rotating confinement field.

A method of screening a sample for at least one compound of interest is disclosed. The method comprises comparing the ion mobility and at least one further physicochemical property of the ions of a compound of interest to the same properties of candidate ions in the sample. The properties of the compound of interest are matched to those of a candidate ion in the sample then the sample may be determined to comprise the compound of interest.

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.

The operation efficiency and accuracy of the simultaneous analysis of phospholipids, including fatty acid compositions are increased. After a first-time LC/MS/MS analysis for determining the phospholipid classes of the phospholipid contained in a sample is performed (S2-S3), a second-time LC/MS/MS analysis for determining fatty acid compositions is performed only for the detected phospholipids (S4-S8). By associating a method list in which an MRM transition for phospholipid class determination is recorded for each compound of phospholipid classes with a method list in which an MRM transition for fatty acid composition determination is recorded for each phospholipid compound, it is possible to promptly select MRM transitions for fatty acid composition determination that correspond to compounds of the detected phospholipid classes, and to easily create an analysis method for the second-time analysis.

A method is disclosed for analyzing ions by mass spectrometry by repeatedly executing a data acquisition cycle to acquire product ion data across a precursor mass range of interest. The data acquisition cycle comprises performing, for each of a plurality of isolation windows having different mass ranges, steps of (i) isolating precursor ions within the mass range of the isolation window, (ii) fragmenting the isolated precursor ions to generate product ions, and (iii) mass analyzing the product ions. The step of mass analyzing the product ions includes concurrently mass analyzing product ions corresponding to N isolation windows, N being an integer greater than or equal to one, wherein N is changed at least once across the data acquisition cycle.

A method of mass spectrometry is disclosed comprising: a) separating first ions or components of an analyte sample according to a physicochemical property other than ion mobility; b) separating said first ions or second ions formed from said components according to ion mobility; c) detecting the intensities of said first ions, or detecting the intensities of second ions formed from said components, or detecting the intensities of ions derived from said first or second ions; wherein the intensity of the ions detected at any given time is recorded together with an associated value of said physicochemical property and an associated value of said ion mobility so as to obtain spectral data; d) examining the intensities of the spectral data as a function of said ion mobility so as to detect an intensity peak in said spectral data, determining a discrete value of ion mobility for said peak, and defining a window of values of ion mobility that encompasses said discrete value; and e) filtering said spectral data so as to include only spectral data that has been associated with values of ion mobility that are within said window of ion mobility values.