New Accurate-mass Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometer is Most Sensitive Ever, Better Than Two Picograms

The new Agilent 6230 Accurate-Mass time-of-flight (TOF) liquid chromatograph mass spectrometer (LCMS) lowers the sensitivity threshold to better than two picograms, making the instrument well-suited for environmental analysis, food safety testing and other applications where trace compounds must be detected in complex matrices. On-column sensitivity gains of five times or more over previous instruments are delivered by Agilent Jet Stream thermal gradient focusing technology. The proprietary design uses a sheath of super-heated nitrogen so that more ions and fewer solvent droplets enter the mass filter. The result is stronger signal and less noise than conventional designs for far greater sensitivity.
Mass accuracy is sub-1-ppm which rivals or exceeds that of much more expensive FTMS and orbital trapping instruments. Mass resolution is also enhanced up to 20,000 resolving power at fastest spectral acquisition rates up to 20 mass spectra per second. This accommodates the latest high-throughput rapid-resolution liquid chromatography systems.
Complementing the unrivaled sensitivity and mass accuracy of the new TOF instrument, Agilent has also compiled an extensive pesticide database for screening environmental and food samples. The database contains accurate mass information for approximately 1,600 pesticides and links to structural information.