Laser time-of-flight mass spectrometry for space

Brinckerhoff, W. B.; Managadze, G. G.; McEntire, R. W.; Cheng, A. F.; Green, W. J.

doi:10.1063/1.1150237

Cited by 66 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Additionally, better instrumentation to characterize planetary surfaces is needed. Towards this end it should be noted that a laser-based ionization source was recently coupled to a TOF instrument for the analyses of both inorganic and organic species in planetary surfaces [43][44][45].…”

Section: Future Missions and Emerging Technologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mass spectrometry in the U.S. space program: Past, present, and future

Palmer

Limero

2001

J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Recent years have witnessed significant progress on the miniaturization of mass spectrometers for a variety of field applications. This article describes the development and application of mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation to support of goals of the U.S. space program. Its main focus is on the two most common space-related applications of MS: studying the composition of planetary atmospheres and monitoring air quality on manned space missions. Both sets of applications present special requirements in terms of analytical performance (sensitivity, selectivity, speed, etc.), logistical considerations (space, weight, and power requirements), and deployment in perhaps the harshest of all possible environments (space). The MS instruments deployed on the Pioneer Venus and Mars Viking Lander missions are reviewed for the purposes of illustrating the unique features of the sample introduction systems, mass analyzers, and vacuum systems, and for presenting their specifications which are impressive even by today's standards. The various approaches for monitoring volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in cabin atmospheres are also reviewed. In the past, ground-based GC/MS instruments have been used to identify and quantify VOCs in archival samples collected during the Mercury, Apollo, Skylab, Space Shuttle, and Mir missions. Some of the data from the more recent missions are provided to illustrate the composition data obtained and to underscore the need for instrumentation to perform such monitoring in situ. Lastly, the development of two emerging technologies, Direct Sampling Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry (DSITMS) and GC/Ion Mobility Spectrometry (GC/IMS), will be discussed to illustrate their potential utility for future missions. (J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2001, 12, 656 -675)

show abstract

Section: Future Missions and Emerging Technologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mass spectrometry in the U.S. space program: Past, present, and future

Palmer

Limero

2001

J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…On such missions, a fixed lander or a rover may be deployed to explore a local region of the surface, where chemical analysis of a variety of regolith materials is expected to be a top priority. A laser ablation TOF-MS can be used for this analysis, without requiring collection and manipulation of samples [8,9, 11 J. In the laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) instrument described previously [8,9], a high-intensity pulsed laser is directed onto a sample of interest, forming ions that travel across the vacuum gap between the instrument and the analyzer inlet, and are subsequently focused in a reflectron.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A laser ablation TOF-MS can be used for this analysis, without requiring collection and manipulation of samples [8,9, 11 J. In the laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) instrument described previously [8,9], a high-intensity pulsed laser is directed onto a sample of interest, forming ions that travel across the vacuum gap between the instrument and the analyzer inlet, and are subsequently focused in a reflectron. Normally, the gap distance L ext (several cm in LAMS) has been treated as fixed, which would require precise instrument positioning such as with a robotic arm.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Figure 1, the field-free drift length L is the sum of ion path lengths outside (L ext ) and inside (Lint) the spectrometer. We show via theoretical simulation that high mass resolution (R > 250, sufficient to resolve unit mass isotopes) elemental analysis can he achieved for L ranging from 33 cm to at least 100 cm.In the LAMS design as described previously [8], the laser ablated ions travel from the sample surface into the mass analyzer and are redirected in a two-stage reflectron onto a dual microchannel plate (MCP) detector, arriving at a sequence of times proportional to the square root of their mass-to-charge ratios, i.e., (m/z) tn Neglecting the initial temporal and spatial spreads, the TOF of a particle with mass m and initial kinetic energy zV is given by the following equation (1):(1) Using the same method, we have extended our simulations to varied lengths, i.e., L = 34 em, 36 em, 38 em, 40 cm, 60 cm, 80 em, and 100 em. The results for varied length of the optimized ( optimal VA) focus of c and resolution are listed in Table 1, and a contour plot of resolution, q and c for L = 100 em is shown in Figure 3(b).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) as a standoff analyzer in space missions for airless bodies

Brinckerhoff

Managadze

et al. 2012

International Journal of Mass Spectrometry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) based on a time-of-flight (TOF) analyzer with adjustable drift length is proposed as a standoff elemental composition sensor for space missions to airless bodies. It is found that the use of a retarding potential analyzer in combination with a two-stage reflectron enables LAMS to be operated at variable drift length. For field-free drift lengths between 33 em to 100 em, at least unit mass resolution can be maintained solely by adjustment of internal voltages, and without resorting to drastic reductions in sensitivity. Therefore, LAMS should be able to be mounted on a robotic arm and analyze samples at standoff distances of up to several tens of em, permitting high operational flexibility and wide area coverage of heterogeneous regolith on airless bodies. 1 https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=20120017379 2018-05-10T03:29:25+00:00Z Miniature mass spectrometers have been designed for use on space missions for decades [1][2][3][4][5]. Time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) has attracted increasing attention [6-10] due to its relative simplicity, wide mass range, high resolution, and compatibility with a variety of sampling and ionization methods. These advantages are especially beneficial on landed missions to airless bodies such as asteroids, comets, and most planetary satellites including the Moon. On such missions, a fixed lander or a rover may be deployed to explore a local region of the surface, where chemical analysis of a variety of regolith materials is expected to be a top priority. A laser ablation TOF-MS can be used for this analysis, without requiring collection and manipulation of samples [8,9, 11 J. In the laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) instrument described previously [8,9], a high-intensity pulsed laser is directed onto a sample of interest, forming ions that travel across the vacuum gap between the instrument and the analyzer inlet, and are subsequently focused in a reflectron. Normally, the gap distance L ext (several cm in LAMS) has been treated as fixed, which would require precise instrument positioning such as with a robotic arm. However, it has been long known that the technique is compatible with variable L ext . The Figure 1, the field-free drift length L is the sum of ion path lengths outside (L ext ) and inside (Lint) the spectrometer. We show via theoretical simulation that high mass resolution (R > 250, sufficient to resolve unit mass isotopes) elemental analysis can he achieved for L ranging from 33 cm to at least 100 cm.In the LAMS design as described previously [8], the laser ablated ions travel from the sample surface into the mass analyzer and are redirected in a two-stage reflectron onto a dual microchannel plate (MCP) detector, arriving at a sequence of times proportional to the square root of their mass-to-charge ratios, i.e., (m/z) tn Neglecting the initial temporal and spatial spreads, the TOF of a particle with mass m and initial kinetic energy zV is given by the following equation (1):(1) Using the same method, we...

show abstract

“…In comparison with these ionization techniques, laser ablation/ionization has been known as one of the efficient sample introduction methods in mass analysis of the solid samples due to the one-step atomization, vaporization and ionization of the samples. 2,6 In addition, laser ionization can make local analysis possible by ablating a small area of the sample, which is irradiated by laser pulses. Therefore it is very effective in estimating the homogeneity of the solid samples.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determination of the Isotope Ratio for Metal Samples Using a Laser Ablation/Ionization Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry

2004

Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The laser ablation/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry is applied to the isotopic analysis of solid samples using a home-made instrument. The technique is convenient for solid sample analysis due to the onestep process of vaporization and ionization of the samples. The analyzed samples were lead, cadmium, molybdenum, and ytterbium. To optimize the analytical conditions of the technique, several parameters, such as laser energy, laser wavelength, size of the laser beam on the samples surface, and high voltages applied on the ion source electrodes were varied. Low energy of laser light was necessary to obtain the optimal mass resolution of spectra. The 532 nm light generated mass spectra with the higher signal-to-noise ratio compared with the 355 nm light. The best mass resolution obtained in the present study is ~1,500 for the ytterbium.

show abstract

Laser time-of-flight mass spectrometry for space

Cited by 66 publications

References 14 publications

Mass spectrometry in the U.S. space program: Past, present, and future

Mass spectrometry in the U.S. space program: Past, present, and future

Laser ablation mass spectrometer (LAMS) as a standoff analyzer in space missions for airless bodies

Determination of the Isotope Ratio for Metal Samples Using a Laser Ablation/Ionization Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About