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Mass Spectrometry Written by Nathyt
Defining Mass Spectrometry
An analytical process measuring mass to charge (m/z) ratios of charged particles.
It is specifically useful for finding the mass of a particle of a substance.
The process
In the process, we take a substance (such as iron, say) and enter it into the spectrometer. Before explaining anything else, here is the process:
- Vapourisation - The substance is vapourised in a vapourisation chamber to form a gas.
- Ionisation - The gaseous substance is released into the process. It is ionised, whereby an electron gun fires high-speed electrons towards the substance. Electrons should be knocked out of the element, forming a positively charged ion.
- Acceleration - The gaseous ion is accelerated through a charged field formed by two charged plates. The sample is then accelerated in a focussed beam at high speeds.
- Deflection - The sample is deflected in a magnetic field. The beam separates.
- Detection - The sample beam is detected by a charged plate. This induces a current relative to no. ions hitting the plate. This is sent to a computer generated graph.
The spectrum produced in this shows to us the number of isotopes in a substance, using mass to charge ratio to determine features of the substance such as Ar (relative atomic mass).
Mass Spectrometry, Nathan
