Ion mobility spectrometry: a personal retrospective

Abstract

With a background in mass spectrometric studies of gas-phase ion chemistry the atmospheric pressure technology of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) presented me with challenges and opportunities. Fundamental studies of the parameters that influence the mobility of ions in a low electric field yielded insights about the effects of temperature, drift gas composition and the conformation of ions on the collision cross section. The inadequacy of current rigid-sphere, polarization limit and hard-core models to predict the mobility of ions particularly at low temperature and in heavy drift gases, led to inclusion of additional terms to the hard-core model to account for these effects. These studies eventually resulted in the two monographs entitled “Ion Mobility Spectrometry” and “Ion Mobility Spectrometry –Second Edition” co-authored with Prof. Gary Eiceman and published by Taylor & Francis, CRC Press in 1994 and 2005, respectively. Novel applications for biological and medical applications were developed on the basis of measurement of biogenic amines by IMS, in particular the rapid, accurate and inexpensive diagnosis of vaginal infections.