Characterization of Macromolecules by Electrospray lonization Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

Application of electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry (MS) to the analysis of oligomers and polymers is reviewed through several representative examples. The benefits and limitations of the technique are discussed considering the molecular weight and complexity (polydispersity) of the analyte. Recent results demonstrating the advantage of using hyphenated techniques such as size exclusion chromatography (SEC) coupled with ESI-MS are highlighted.