A mass spectrum is a graph or chart produced by a mass spectrometer.
It shows the different ions detected in a sample and their mass-to-charge ratios (m/z).
In simple words:
A mass spectrum tells you what ions are present and how much of each is there.
What it looks like:
- The x-axis shows the m/z (mass-to-charge ratio).
- The y-axis shows the intensity, which tells how many ions of each type were detected.
What it shows you:
- Each peak represents an ion.
- The height of the peak shows the amount of that ion.
- The position of the peak shows the mass-to-charge ratio.
Example:
If you see a big peak at m/z = 58, it means many ions have that mass-to-charge value.
In short:
A mass spectrum is a picture that helps scientists identify the different ions in a sample and understand its chemical composition.