Orthogonal acceleration time-of-flight mass spectrometry

The principles and applications of time-of-flight mass spectrometry involvi ng instruments with independent (orthogonal) axes for ion generation and ma ss analysis are reviewed. This approach, generally referred to as orthogona l acceleration time-of-flight mass spectrometry, has proved particularly ad vantageous for the combination of continuous ionization sources with time-o f-flight mass spectrometry. The history of the technique is briefly discuss ed along with the instrumental principles pertaining to all the stages of t he instrumentation from ion source to detector. The applications of commerc ial and customized instruments are discussed for several ionization methods including electrospray, matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization, elect ron ionization, and plasma ionization. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.