MALDI-TOF mass spectrometers with delay time variations and related methods

摘要

MALDI-TOF MS systems have solid state lasers and successive and varied delay times between ionization and acceleration (e.g. extraction) to change focus masses during a single sample signal acquisition without requiring tuning of the MS by a user. The (successive) different delay times can change by 1 ns to about 500 ns, and can be in a range that is between 1-2500 nanoseconds.

主权项

1. A delayed extraction (DE) matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TOF MS), comprising:
a housing enclosing an analysis flow path; a solid state laser in optical communication with the analysis flow path; a variable voltage input; a delayed extraction plate connected to the variable voltage input; a flight tube in the housing, residing upstream of the delayed extraction plate and defining a free drift portion of the analysis flow path; a detector in communication with the flight tube; and a variable delay time module in communication with the laser and the variable voltage input configured to operate the variable voltage input with a plurality of different successive delay times during signal acquisition of a single sample, each respective delay time being increased or decreased from another delay time by between about 1 nanosecond to about 500 nanoseconds to thereby obtain signal with a plurality of different focus masses at the detector.