mass spectrometry

mass spectrometry

noun

Definition of MASS SPECTROMETRY

: an instrumental method for identifying the chemical constitution of a substance by means of the separation of gaseous ions according to their differing mass and charge —called also mass spectroscopy

— mass spectrometric adjective

— mass spectrometer noun

First Known Use of MASS SPECTROMETRY

1943

mass spectrometry

noun    (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of MASS SPECTROMETRY

: an instrumental method for identifying the chemical constitution of a substance by means of the separation of gaseous ions according to their differing mass and charge—called also mass spectroscopy

—mass spectrometric adjective

—mass spectrometrically adverb

mass spectrometry

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Analytic technique by which chemical substances are identified by sorting gaseous ions by mass using electric and magnetic fields. A mass spectrometer uses electrical means to detect the sorted ions, while a mass spectrograph uses photographic or other nonelectrical means; either device is a mass spectroscope. The process is widely used to measure masses and relative abundances of different isotopes, to analyze products of a separation by liquid or gas chromatography, to test vacuum integrity in high-vacuum equipment, and to measure the geological age of minerals.

Variants of MASS SPECTROMETRY

mass spectrometry or mass spectroscopy