Resolution and mass range performance in distance-of-flight mass spectrometry with a multichannel focal-plane camera detector

Distance-of-flight mass spectrometry (DOFMS) is a velocity-based mass-separation technique in which ions are separated in space along the plane of a spatially selective detector. In the present work, a solid-state charge-detection array, the focal-plane camera (FPC), was incorporated into the DOFMS platform. Use of the FPC with our DOFMS instrument resulted in improvements in analytical performance, usability, and versatility over a previous generation instrument that employed a microchannel-plate/phosphor DOF detector. Notably, FPC detection provided resolution improvements of at least a factor of 2, with typical DOF linewidths of 300 μm (R _(fwhm) = 1000). The merits of solid-state detection for DOFMS are evaluated, and methods to extend the DOFMS mass range are considered.