A new concept for characterizing peptides and proteins using a modified mass spectrometric approach

Abstract

A new concept of mass spectrometry is described in which individual ions are characterized with respect to mass and structure. The concept allows flexibility in ion source design by removing the need for high ion currents. It greatly simplifies the required ion optical scheme by removing the need for magnetic or r.f. fields. No pulsed excitation for pulsed voltages is required. Time-of-flight measurements are made but without requiring knowledge or use of the time of ion creation. The technique provides MS-MS type information, promises high mass resolution, and very high absolute sensitivity. Instrumentation based upon this concept should be ideally suited to the high sensitivity detection and sequencing of peptides and proteins.