imaging mass spectrometry

In a MALDI-TOF instrument, the incident laser desorption and ionising beam can be rastered over a two-dimensional surface. Similarly, in TOF SIMS, the impacting ion beam is rastered. Diagnostic ions specific to target molecules are  detected and their abundance is converted into an  image reflecting their intensities within the material being analysed. This development has important applications in biological and medical  studies and has been used as a complementary  technique to microscopy for tissue sections. Also known as ion imaging.