ESI-FTICR mass spectrometry employing data-dependent external ion selection and accumulation.

Data-dependent external m/z selection and accumulation of ions is demonstrated in use with ESI-FTICR instrumentation, with two different methods for ion selection being explored. One method uses RF/DC quadrupole filtering and is described in use with an 11.5 tesla (T) FTICR instrument, while the second method employs RF-only resonance dipolar excitation selection and is described in use with a 3.5 T FTICR instrument. In both methods ions are data-dependently selected on the fly in a linear quadrupole ion guide, then accumulated in a second linear RF-only quadrupole trap that immediately follows. A major benefit of ion preselection prior to external accumulation is the enhancement of ion populations for low-level species. This development is expected to expand the dynamic range and sensitivity of FTICR for applications including analysis of complex polypeptide mixtures (e.g., proteomics).