Abstract: A method for generating an extracted ion chromatogram (XIC) from mass spectrometry data is disclosed. Mass spectrometry data are received comprised of a plurality of data points, each data point representing a measured ion intensity at a mass to charge ratio at a chromatographic retention time and these data are filtered to produce a filtered dataset. A minimal spanning tree is then generated connecting the data points of the filtered dataset and tree branches are pruned in accordance with a specified length threshold to yield one or more sub-trees. The sub-trees are then interpreted as a set of XICs and displayed on a display device.

Abstract: A system for analyzing a sample includes a chromatographic device, a mass resolving device, and a data processor. The chromatographic device is configured to separate components of the sample using a chromatographic column. The mass resolving device is configured to characterize mass spectrographic properties of the separated components in an intact state, and fragment the separated components and characterize mass spectrographic properties of the resulting fragments.