Development of a palm portable mass spectrometer.

A palm portable mass spectrometer (PPMS) has been developed with a weight of 1.48 kg (3 lb) and a size of 1.54 L (8.2 x 7.7 x 24.5 cm(3)) that can be operated with an average battery power of 5 W. A miniaturized ion trap has been used as a mass analyzer that consists of four parallel disks with coaxial holes. A rf voltage of 1500 V(p-p) at 3.9 MHz has been used for scanning ion mass of up to m/z 300. An ion-getter pump serves for high vacuum of the PPMS. Sample gas was introduced in pulse mode. An embedded microcomputer has been developed for system control. Detection of organic gases diluted in the air has been demonstrated up to 6 ppm for toluene and 22 ppm for dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP). Performance results suggest usefulness of the PPMS as a personal mobile device for detection/identification of chemical warfare agents in the field.