Having a charge enables you to not only detect molecules but also to measure their masses, which you can't do with neutral molecules. |
It's one thing to detect a substance, but it's another thing to be absolutely certain of its composition, which is what you get with mass spectrometry. |
TATP is difficult to detect with most other technologies. |
The two most important aspects are that this can be done at atmospheric pressure and just by heating a sample, a procedure which is much simpler than existing ionization methods using a laser or high-energy beam. The method does not require a high-voltage power source. |
We have shown that the spectrum is pretty clean and that there are almost no fragment ions, which was unexpected. |
What we are talking about is something that monitors the environment in real time. This technology is practical because it is portable, rugged and accurate. |