Interpretation of Mass Spectra and Characterization of Organic Molecules—A Practitioner's Tutorial

Abstract

Characterization of diverse organic molecules often requires manual interpretation of various types of mass spectra. Although specialized approach may be necessary for solving each specific problem, fundamentals of gas-phase chemistry of organic ions provide a common framework for understanding fragmentations observed in electron ionization mass spectrometry and tandem mass spectrometry coupled with soft ionization methods. This brief tutorial for practitioners in the mass spectrometry and related fields introduces the essence of spectral interpretation and structural characterization including the ion chemistry framework and some related topics.