Mass spectrometry

Mass spectrometry has evolved to become the biggest (in market share and total expenditure) analytical technology. It is also the analytical instrumentation sector with the biggest annual increase, thus signifying its importance and value. Mass spectrometry has become the method of choice because it offers unique characteristics not provided by other technologies such as unsurpassed sensitivity, specificity, molecular weight, and structural information. In the area of food analysis, mass spectrometry is widely used as it is the official method for the analysis of numerous forbidden substances. The present chapter tries to introduce the reader to the technology describing in short the basics of the instrumentation and the technology (ionization methods and mass analyzers). We also describe selected applications (as it is impossible to describe them all in one chapter or even a book). The upcoming field of metabolomics is also described along with the perspectives of the mass spectrometry technology.