Ion Source Overview
The Turbo V ion source can be used for either electrospray ionization (ESI) or atmospheric
pressure chemical ionization (APCI).
The TurboIonSpray probe is used for ESI mode operation. The APCI probe is used for APCI
mode operation.
Applications for the ion source include qualitative method development and qualitative and
quantitative analysis.
The installation procedures can be performed on the following systems:
• TripleTOF systems
• QTRAP and SCIEX Triple Quad systems
In this guide, the software that controls the mass spectrometer is referred to as the control
software. The control software varies depending on the mass spectrometer used. Refer to the
following table.
Ionization Modes
ESI Mode
ESI produces gas phase ions of analytes in a sample by applying a high voltage to the sample
effluent flowing through a needle. With the aid of heated gas flow, ESI produces singly and
multiply charged ions in a relatively mild condition so that it is suitable for a wide range of
compounds including small molecules, such as drugs or pesticides, and larger molecules,
such as peptides, proteins, and other biopolymers. The sensitivity depends on the chemical
properties of the analyte, the gas flow rate, the temperature, the voltage, and the mobile phase
composition.
The ESI technique is mild enough to be used with labile compounds, such as peptides, proteins,
and thermally labile pharmaceuticals. It functions with flow rates from 5 µL/min to 3,000 µL/min
and it vaporizes 100% aqueous to 100% organic solvents.
Refer to the section:
APCI Mode
The APCI mode is suitable for:
• Ionization of compounds that do not readily form ions in solution. These are usually non-polar
compounds.
• Creation of simple APCI spectra for LC-MS/MS experiments.
• High-throughput analyses of complex and dirty samples. It is less sensitive to ion suppression
effects.
Principles of Operation
SCIEX 3200 Systems
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System User Guide
RUO-IDV-05-6475-C
