mass spectrometer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_spectrometry mass spectrometer A mass spectrometer is an instrument which is used to measure the mass to charge ratio of ions. All mass spectrometers consist of three basic parts: an ion source, a mass analyzer, and a detector system. The stages within the mass spectrometer are: 1. Production of ions from the sample 2. Separation of ions with different masses 3. Detection of the number of ions of each mass produced 4.Collection of data to generate the mass spectrum measurement device ready for release