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A novel ionization scheme for ambient mass spectrometry is presented and discussed. Desorption and ionization are achieved by a quasi-continuous laser induced plasma (LIP) ignited in front of the atmospheric pressure interface of a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This setup comprises the advantages of i) an ambient probe, ii) electro neutrality, iii) low power consumption, iv) a sufficient duty cycle, v) a ubiquitous plasma medium (air) and vi) high sensitivity caused by the high electron number densities.
The plasma properties and operating conditions are investigated to understand the processes that lead to the formation of molecular ions. Comprehensive studies include optical emission spectroscopy, shadowgraphic shockwave visualization and time-of-flight mass spectrometry investigations. The observed MS signal (including reagent-ion signal, as well as analyte spectra) closely resembles the ionization behavior of other electrically-driven plasma-based ionization sources, such as DBD, LTP or DART. Conversely that means that although LIPs are commonly known to have temperatures way above 10.000 K and thus efficiently atomize and ionize molecules, MS spectra were obtained that showed the formation of intact molecular ions.
For an insight into the LIP properties the optical emission of the LIP is examined and exhibits a pronounced degree of dissociation into atomic and ionic species, which reflects the higher temperature and electron density inside a LIP. Accordingly, rather elemental (ICP-type) than molecular spectra should be expected. However due to the absence of such ions, we conclude that the analyte does not enter the hot center of the plasma itself. Moreover, the initial, highly-excited plasma species react cascade-like to lower energetic species via reactive collision with the surrounding atmosphere, which can then subsequently ionize molecules of interest. The concept potentially involves charge transfer, proton transfer, electron impact and photoionization.
These assumptions are confirmed via the shadowgraphs of the expanding shockwave around the LIP. An effective spatial separation between the two regions is maintained by concentrically expanding pressure waves resulting in a strongly unidirectional diffusion. Additionally, the strictly outbound matter transport suggests a rarefaction inside the plasma region for each plasma event.
A novel ionization scheme for ambient mass spectrometry is presented and discussed. Desorption and ionization are achieved by a quasi-continuous laser induced plasma (LIP) ignited in front of the atmospheric pressure interface of a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This setup comprises the advantages of i) an ambient probe, ii) electro neutrality, iii) low power consumption, iv) a sufficient duty cycle, v) a ubiquitous plasma medium (air) and vi) high sensitivity caused by the high electron number densities.
The plasma properties and operating conditions are investigated to understand the processes that lead to the formation of molecular ions. Comprehensive studies include optical emission spectroscopy, shadowgraphic shockwave visualization and time-of-flight mass spectrometry investigations. The observed MS signal (including reagent-ion signal, as well as analyte spectra) closely resembles the ionization behavior of other electrically-driven plasma-based ionization sources, such as DBD, LTP or DART. Conversely that means that although LIPs are commonly known to have temperatures way above 10.000 K and thus efficiently atomize and ionize molecules, MS spectra were obtained that showed the formation of intact molecular ions. For an insight into the LIP properties the optical emission of the LIP is examined and exhibits a pronounced degree of dissociation into atomic and ionic species, which reflects the higher temperature and electron density inside a LIP. Accordingly, rather elemental (ICP-type) than molecular spectra should be expected. However due to the absence of such ions, we conclude that the analyte does not enter the hot center of the plasma itself. Moreover, the initial, highlyexcited plasma species react cascade-like to lower energetic species via reactive collision with the surrounding atmosphere, which can then subsequently ionize molecules of interest. The concept potentially involves charge transfer, proton transfer, electron impact and photoionization.
These assumptions are confirmed via the shadowgraphs of the expanding shockwave around the LIP. An effective spatial separation between the two regions is maintained by concentrically expanding pressure waves resulting in a strongly unidirectional diffusion. Additionally, the strictly outbound matter transport suggests a rarefaction inside the plasma region for each plasma event.
A commercially available airbrush gun as a new source for spray ionization is presented. It is best operated employing moderate stagnation pressures, resulting in a sonic gas flow. A mass spectrometric investigation on the amino acid lysine and several peptides reveals that this inexpensive approach results in reproducible mass spectra. The ion patterns strongly resemble the results from other studies obtained with custom made sonic spray vaporizers. The patterns as well resemble the mass spectra recorded with electrospray devices. For a better understanding of the vaporization process, the mass spectrometry experiments are accompanied by laser induced fluorescence experiments. Inverse Abel transform of the obtained fluorescence maps allows the determination of the full 3D distribution of the spray cone. Furthermore, via exploitation of the solvatochromism of the used dye the solvation state distribution can be visualized. In addition, expansion parameters like droplet size and velocity are obtained by laser stroboscopy. The experiments demonstrate that the analyte is hardly desolvated throughout the expansion. This indicates a subsequent vaporization of the residual solvent in the intermediate pressure region of the mass spectrometer.
Mass spectrometry is applied as a tool for the elucidation of molecular structures. This premises that gas-phase structures reflect the original geometry of the analytes, while it requires a thorough understanding and investigation of the forces controlling and affecting the gas-phase structures. However, only little is known about conformational changes of oligonucleotides in the gas phase. In this study, a series of multiply charged DNA oligonucleotides (n¼15–40) has been subjected to a comprehensive tandem mass spectrometric study to unravel transitions between different ionic gas-phase structures. The nucleobase sequence and the chain length were varied to gain insights into their influence on the geometrical oligonucleotide organization. Altogether, 23 oligonucleotides were analyzed using collision-induced fragmentation. All sequences showed comparable correlation regarding the characteristic collision energy. This value that is also a measure for stability, strongly correlates with the net charge density of the precursor ions. With decreasing charge of the oligonucleotides, an increase in the fragmentation energy was observed. At a distinct charge density, a deviation from linearity was observed for all studied species, indicating a structural reorganization. To corroborate the proposed geometrical change, collisional cross-sections of the oligonucleotides at different charge states were determined using ion mobility-mass spectrometry. The results clearly indicate that an increase in charge density and thus Coulomb repulsion results in the transition from a folded, compact form to elongated structures of the precursor ions. Our data show this structural transition to depend mainly on the charge density, whereas sequence and size do not have an influence.
The composition of acoustically levitated droplets was probed by a novel combination of mid-IR laser evaporation and subsequent postionization via secondary electrospray ionization. The combination of microliter samples and subnanoliter sampling provided time-resolved interrogation of droplets and allowed for a kinetic investigation of the laser-induced release of the analyte, which was found to strongly depend on the analytes. The observed substancespecific delayed release of the analytes permitted baseline-separated discrimination of the analytes, ideal for the study of complex samples.
The additionally applied postionization scheme was found to enable efficient detection of small volatile compounds as well as peptides. The detection of small molecules and peptides occurred under very different sampling geometries, pointing to two distinct underlying ionization mechanisms. Overall, our results suggest that the experimental setup presented in this study can serve as a widely applicable platform to study chemical reactions in acoustically levitated droplets as model reactors.
The ability to controllably move gaseous ions is an essential aspect of ion-based spectrometry (e.g., mass spectrometry and ion mobility spectrometry) as well as materials processing. At higher pressures, ion motion is largely governed by diffusion and multiple collisions with neutral gas molecules. Thus, high-pressure ion optics based on electrostatics require large fields, radio frequency drives, complicated geometries, and/or partially transmissive grids that become contaminated. Here, we demonstrate that low-power standing acoustic waves can be used to guide, block, focus, and separate beams of ions akin to electrostatic ion optics. Ions preferentially travel through the static-pressure regions (“nodes”) while neutral gas does not appear to be impacted by the acoustic field structure and continues along a straight trajectory. This acoustic ion manipulation (AIM) approach has broad implications for ion manipulation techniques at high pressure, while expanding our fundamental understanding of the behavior of ions in gases.
The combination of acoustically levitated droplets, mid-IR laser evaporation, and subsequent post-ionization by secondary electrospray ionization was applied for monitoring the enzymatic digestion of various proteins. Acoustically levitated droplets are an ideal, wall-free model reactor, readily allowing compartmentalized microfluidic trypsin digestions. Time-resolved interrogation of the droplets yielded real-time information on the progress of the reaction and thus provided insights into reaction kinetics. After 30 min of digestion in the acoustic levitator, the obtained protein sequence coverages were identical to the reference overnight digestions. Importantly, our results clearly demonstrate that the applied experimental setup can be used for the real-time investigation of chemical reactions. Furthermore, the described methodology only uses a fraction of the typically applied amounts of solvent, analyte, and trypsin. Thus, the results exemplify the use of acoustic levitation as a green analytical chemistry alternative to the currently used batch reactions.
Living organisms constantly interact with their environment, including through the exchange of gases. Respiration and the release and uptake of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) create dynamic microenvironments in biological systems. Studying the kinetics of volatiles in biological systems requires expensive instruments, and data analysis is challenging. Therefore, we aimed to design a minimal analytical device for measuring the composition of gaseous mixtures in realtime.
We built the ‘Modular Biological Mass Spectrometer’ (MoBiMS) from 3D-printed parts and custom sensors to fit a wide array of experimental set-ups. We tested the chemical detection range and temporal resolution of the MoBiMS employing pure compounds and complex biological samples.
Compounds with a higher than 0.4 mmHg vapor pressure and a molecular weight up to 154 g/mol were reliably sensed within seconds. The generated electron impact (EI) spectra were directly comparable with standard databases like the NIST EI library. Under a direct analysis approach, the MoBiMS identified the characteristic odor of banana (Musa sp.), that is, isoamyl acetate; tracked the dynamics of CO2 release while the Alka-Seltzer® reaction occurred showed the kinetics of the transient production and consumption of carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. MoBiMS also discriminated between volatile compounds ions coming from tobacco (Nicotiana benthamiana) leaves and the surrounding air through untargeted analysis. The small footprint of the MoBiMS and its relatively low energy consumption facilitate in situ analyses, as an additional gas supply is not necessary with EI ionization. The MoBiMS is easy to assemble, and its construction and operation are very cost-efficient compared to commercial devices. The analytical performance of the MoBiMS is suitable for real-time studies of biological systems, environmental monitoring, and medical diagnostics.
New-found interest in the development of ionization sources for mass spectrometry, inspired by the advent of ambient desorption/ionization mass spectrometry, has led to a resurgence in plasma-source development and characterization. Dielectric-barrier discharges, particularly the low-temperature plasma (LTP) probe format, have been at the forefront of this field due to their low power consumption and relatively simple design. However, better fundamental understanding of this desorption/ionization source is needed to improve the analytical capabilities of such a device. Here, we use relatively fast (2.5 ms per spectrum) time-resolved mass spectrometry to characterize the temporal reagent-ion distribution from a low-frequency LTP probe. Different voltage waveforms were found to heavily influence the discharge properties and, consequently, ion production. Ion signals from short discharge pulses, ca. 40 µs, were found to be significantly broadened, ca. 10 ms, prior to extraction into the mass spectrometer. Additionally, higher frequencies of a sine-wave LTP produced the largest flux of reagent ions, which existed for most of the voltage waveforms. Finally, temporal signals for reagent and analyte ions were measured and related to specific ionization processes: proton transfer and charge transfer.
Tandem mass spectrometry represents an important analytical tool to unravel molecular structures and to study the gas-phase behavior of organic molecules. Besides commonly used methods like collision-induced dissociation and electron capture or transfer dissociation, new ultraviolet light–based techniques have the potential to synergistically add to the activation methods. Here, we present a new simple, yet robust, experimental design for polychromatic activation of trapped ions using the 115–160 nm output of a commercially available deuterium lamp. The resulting continuous dissociative excitation with photons of a wide energy range from 7.7 to 10.8 eV is studied for a comprehensive set of analyte classes in both positive and negative ion modes. While being simple, affordable, compact, and of low maintenance, the new setup initiates fragmentation of most precursor ions via their known dissociation pathways. Additionally, some new fragmentation patterns were discovered. Especially, electron loss and electron capture reactions with subsequent fragmentations were observed. For oligonucleotides, peptides, carbohydrates, and organic dyes, in comparison to collision-induced dissociation, a significantly wider fragment distribution was obtained, resulting in an information increase. Since the individual photons carry enough energy to post-ionize the nascent fragments, a permanent vacuum ultraviolet light exposure inside the ion trap potentially goes along with a general increase in detection capability.