Mass Spectrometry

Mass spectrometry is a technique of using an instrument called a mass spectrometer to determine the mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) of a charged particle, typically an ion. The output is in the form of a (Mass) Spectrum. For background, see Wikipedia: Mass_spectrometry.

Although SIMION has broad application to electromagetic problems in terms of calculating fields (e.g. Poisson Equation and Lorentz Force Law) and applying that to charge particle optics problems (like Lens design), SIMION has some historical roots and has gained a wide acceptance in the mass spectrometry field. A good number of published papers on SIMION have involved mass spectrometry. Many (though not necessarily most) of SIMION’s examples involve mass spectrometry. Most mass spectrometry companies–big and little– use it to varying extents, and it has wide usage in universities and government labs studying MS and related optical design. SIMION has even extended into areas not specifically MS but often coupled to it like ion mobility.

See Also

• Wikipedia: Mass_spectrometry

• Types: Cylindrical Mirror Analyzer (CMA), Hemispherical Deflection Analyzer (HDA), Ion Trap, Magnetic Sector

• Examples (partial list): SIMION Example: hda, SIMION Example: icrcell, SIMION Example: kingdon_trap, SIMION Example: magnetic_sector, SIMION Example: magnet, SIMION Example: quad, SIMION Example: octupole, SIMION Example: sims, SIMION Example: tof, SIMION Example: spectrum, SIMION Example: pseudopotential

• (Mass) Spectrum

• ASMS

• Theory of Particle Optics

• Mathieu Equation and Stability Diagram