Ion mobility spectrometers with improved resolution
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for detecting whether a substance of interest is present in a sample of air, comprising;
- an inlet for delivering the sample of air;
an ion mobility detector in communication with the inlet and operable alternately at high and low drift voltage levels for detecting whether the substance of interest is present;
at least one source of high voltage for applying a high drift voltage to the detector; and
a controller communicating with the detector and the source of high voltage for selectively reducing the voltage to the detector to a low drift voltage.
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Abstract
An apparatus is provided for detecting whether substances of interest are present in a sample of air. The apparatus includes a detector, such as an ion trap mobility spectrometer. The detector is operated at a high drift voltage and then is switched to a low drift voltage. Spectra are collected at the high and low field strengths and are compared with standard spectra at those strengths to determine whether materials of interest are present.
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. An apparatus for detecting whether a substance of interest is present in a sample of air, comprising;
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an inlet for delivering the sample of air;
an ion mobility detector in communication with the inlet and operable alternately at high and low drift voltage levels for detecting whether the substance of interest is present;
at least one source of high voltage for applying a high drift voltage to the detector; and
a controller communicating with the detector and the source of high voltage for selectively reducing the voltage to the detector to a low drift voltage. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. An apparatus for detecting whether substances of interest are in any of plurality of samples of air, said apparatus comprising;
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an inlet for receiving one of the samples of air;
a reaction chamber communicating with the inlet and operative for ionizing molecules in the reaction chamber;
a drift tube in communication with the reaction chamber;
a collector electrode in the drift tube at a location spaced from the reaction chamber;
at least one field-defining electrode in the drift tube between the reaction chamber and the collector electrode;
at least one source of voltage for applying a drift voltage across the field-defining electrode; and
a controller for selectively switching between a high drift voltage and a low drift voltage for alternating between a high field strength and a low field strength in the drift tube. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for testing samples of air to determine whether any of the samples of air contain a substance of interest, the method comprising;
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delivering one of the samples of air to an ion mobility detector;
operating the detector at a first drift voltage level to test for a presence of the substance of interest in the sample; and
operating the detector at a second drift voltage level to test for the presence of the substance of interest. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification