Patent · US Active

Vacuum housing system for MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

US7564028B2 · kind B2 · utility

51Cited by
48References
25Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMay 1, 2007
Grant dateJul 21, 2009
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 29, 2028

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10T436/24
  • WIPO fieldChemical engineering
  • WIPO sectorChemistry

Abstract

The present invention is directed to ion source and vacuum housings for use in MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry which operates with any type of mass analyzer including linear, reflector, or tandem TOF-TOF instruments. By removing the requirement for the vacuum lock, the present invention allows operation of the ion source vacuum chamber at a pressure at least two orders of magnitude higher than conventional instruments. The present invention also requires only a single valve that isolates the ion source vacuum housing from the TOF analyzer vacuum housing. This is a significant improvement over vacuum locks in the art where the valve opening must be sufficiently large to allow the sample plate to pass through.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.