Development and characterization of ion mobility spectrometer

The stability of an atmospheric pressure plasma source (APPS) for ion mobility spectrometer applications was investigated. Optimizations of the APPS for the operation conditions such as coil size and position for a plasma inductive excitation, and the ignition wire location were attempted. Ignition of Ar plasma is facilitated by the difference in electric potential inside the coil and the distance between the coil and the aluminum base attached to the ground terminal. Characterization of the ignition conditions, I-V measurements using a Gerdien condenser, and noise level in the ion current output signals were done for the developed APPS. The insertion of the ignition wire was found to affect the amplitude and value of the transported ion current through the Gerdien condenser. (author)