ABSTRACT
To meet diverse application needs, modern ICP-MS instrumentation has to be very flexible if it is to keep up with the increasing demands of its users. Nowhere is this more important than in the area of peak integration and measurement protocol. The way the analytical signal is managed in ICP-MS has a direct impact on its multielement characteristics, isotopic capability, detection limits, dynamic range, and sample throughput-the five major strengths that attracted the trace element community to the technique almost 30 years ago. To understand signal management in greater detail and its implications on data quality, we will discuss how measurement protocol is optimized based on the application’s analytical requirements, and its impact on both continuous signals generated by traditional nebulization devices and transient signals produced by alternative sample introduction techniques such as laser ablation, chromatographic separation, particle size studies, and flow injection.
