Tömegspektrográfia

Tömegspektrográfia is an analytical technique used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. It is a powerful tool for determining the elemental composition of a sample, as well as identifying unknown compounds. The process typically involves ionizing the sample, separating the ions based on their mass-to-charge ratio, and then detecting the abundance of each ion.

The ionization process can be achieved through various methods, including electron ionization, chemical ionization, or electrospray ionization, depending on the nature of the sample. Once ionized, the ions are accelerated into a mass analyzer, where they are subjected to electric and magnetic fields. These fields cause ions with different mass-to-charge ratios to follow different paths, effectively separating them. Common types of mass analyzers include quadrupole, time-of-flight, and magnetic sector analyzers.

Finally, a detector registers the arrival of the separated ions and measures their abundance. The resulting data is presented as a mass spectrum, which plots the relative intensity of ions against their mass-to-charge ratio. This spectrum serves as a unique fingerprint for the analyzed substance, allowing for identification and quantification. Tömegspektrográfia finds applications in diverse fields such as chemistry, biology, environmental science, and forensics for tasks like drug testing, protein identification, and environmental pollutant analysis.