1998/05/01 by Bruce A Thomson, Bruce A. Thomson
Chemistry · Engineering · #Advanced Chemical Sensor Technologies #Analytical Chemistry and Chromatography #Mass Spectrometry Techniques and Applications
paper · doi:10.1139/v98-073
openalex publication_date 1998/05/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
The role of RF quadrupoles in modern mass spectrometer and tandem mass spectrometer systems is described. A good deal of the success in the application of tandem quadrupole mass spectrometers and atmospheric pressure ionization mass spectrometers is due to new applications of the RF quadrupole ion guide. Developments that led from the use of very open, "transparent" electrodes in a cryopumped system to the opposite extreme of well-confined RF quadrupoles that operate advantageously at pressures of several mTorr are described. The ion containment properties of RF quadrupoles are remarkably insensitive to the accuracy of the electrode positions. This has allowed the use of novel quadrupole designs in order to provide unique solutions to instrumentational and physical-chemical problems.Key words: quadrupole, focusing, mass spectrometer.