ionist

Ionist is a rarely used term in English. There is no widely accepted definition or professional designation for an ionist. In general, it appears as an informal label for someone who studies ions or works with ionization processes, but the exact scope depends on context. Because "ion" denotes a charged particle, the term can be ambiguous: it may refer to a laboratory researcher in electrochemistry or plasma physics, a specialist in ion implantation, or more broadly to anyone who works with ionic species. In standard scientific writing, however, more precise terms such as chemist, physicist, electrochemist, mass spectrometrist, or plasma physicist are used instead of ionist.

Outside formal science, ionist can appear in fiction or speculative writing as the name of a group, doctrine, or faction linked to ionic theory or technology. As a result, its meaning is highly text-dependent and often not portable across contexts. In reference works and dictionaries, ionist is not listed as a conventional occupation or field of study, reinforcing its status as a fringe or context-specific term.

See also: Ion, Ionization, Ion propulsion, Electrochemistry, Ion exchange.