Internal pulsed valve sample introduction on a quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer.

A pulsed valve positioned just outside the ion trap electrodes (within the vacuum chamber) has been characterized. The observed gas pulse widths and the maximum ion intensities were found to decrease as the distance between the pulsed valve and the ion trap electrodes increased. An explanation is presented within. The pulsed valve was found to impart temporal separation in ion-molecule reactions by permitting the removal of interfering neutrals. Other factors that affect the degree of temporal separation also are presented.