| 摘要 |
An ion source for a mass spectrometer is disclosed comprising an ultrasonic transducer which focuses ultrasonic energy onto the surface of a sample fluid without said transducer directly contacting the fluid, so as to eject multiple droplets from the sample in a controlled and sequential manner without forming an uncontrolled mist. The droplets ejected from the sample fluid may be charged droplets which have been ionized by charge segregation. Alternatively, the droplets may initially be predominantly uncharged, but are ionized downstream by another method, such interaction with an electrospray mist, before entering a mass spectrometer via an ion inlet. The sample fluid may be contained within the wells of a microtitre or multi-well sample plate which may be moved relative to the ultrasonic transducer. The properties of the sample fluid, such as its density and surface position, may also be determined from reflected acoustic energy detected by the ultrasound transducer. |
