Compact Ambient Pressure Pyroelectric Ion Source for Mass Spectrometry

We present the construction and implementation of a compact, low-power ambient pressure pyroelectric ionization source. The source comprises a z-cut lithium niobate or lithium tantalate crystal with an attached resistive heater mounted in front of the atmospheric pressure inlet of an ion trap mass spectrometer. Positive and negative ion formation alternately results from thermally cycling the crystal over a narrow temperature range. Ionization...