Abstract: The invention provides a method of design for a time-of-flight mass spectrometer that is compact and has high mass resolution over a broad range of ion masses. This method of design, for the high-resolution analysis of analyte ions in the time-of-flight mass spectrometer, includes decreasing the strength of the time-dependent extraction potential according to a predetermined continuous function so as to spread out the energy distribution of the ions and achieving high mass resolution over a broad range of masses without altering the time dependence or magnitude of the applied potentials, across the acceleration region and ion mirror, and the time-dependent extraction potential, and not changing the physical dimensions of the mass spectrometer. Using this method of design, mass resolution of approximately or greater than 10,000 can be achieved over approximately five orders of magnitude of mass for a time-of-flight mass spectrometer having a total overall length of less than 46 cm.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus (100) for laser (101) ablative modification of surfaces (120). The apparatus (100) includes a controller adapted to determine the wavelength corresponding to a characteristic wavelength of the absorption band, as well as an intensity and a duration such that a light pulse with the determined wavelength, intensity, and duration is capable of heating the portion of the dielectric material (120) to approximately the critical temperature of the dielectric material on a time scale less than about the characteristic time scale for thermal diffusion in the dielectric material and thereby inducing a phase explosion in the dielectric material. The apparatus further includes a laser (101) capable of providing at least one light pulse with the determined wavelength, intensity and duration in response to a signal from the controller.