Pulsed electron beams in ion mobility spectrometry

Abstract

Ion mobility spectrometry is a well-known technique used to analyze trace gases in ambient air. Typically, it works by employing a radioactive source to provide electrons with high energy to ionize the analytes in a series of chemical reactions. During the past ten years non-radioactive sources have been one of the subjects of interest in ion mobility spectrometry, initially in order to replace radioactive sources as a result of general security and regulatory concerns. Among these non-radioactive sources especially pulsed sources have recently been shown to additionally improve the analytic information provided by ion mobility spectrometers. In this review we will describe the progress regarding the application of pulsed non-radioactive electron sources in ion mobility spectrometry and show the recent analytical advances that have been achieved by using pulsed electron beams.