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Until recently only low molecular weight, volatile compounds were amenable to analysis by conventional mass spectrometric methods. Most larger species simply could not be promoted into the gas phase without substantial degradation and/or fragmentation. Since Fenn and coworkers first introduced electrospray ionization (ESI) coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) as a viable analytical technique, the field of (bio)analytical mass spectrometry has seen explosive growth.
ESI-MS is now one of the most widely utilized and fastest growing mass spectrometric techniques for the analysis of bimolecular species. This article is intended to introduce the theory, principles, and instrumentation of ESI-MS to teachers, researchers, and future researchers with a rudimentary knowledge of ion formation, separation, and detection processes.
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