Ion trap

This article is about gas phase ions. For ions in cells, see ion trapping.

An ion trap consists of electrodes that produce electric fields to trap ions (charged particles), which may be atoms, molecules, or large particles such as dust. Ion traps have a number of applications including mass spectrometry, atomic frequency standards, and quantum computing. In comparison to neutral atom traps, ion traps have deeper trapping potentials (up to several electronvolts) that are agnostic to the internal structure of the ions. The two most popular ion traps are the Paul trap which uses static and oscillating electric fields and the Penning trap, which uses a static electric field and static magnetic field. Paul traps are used in trapped ion quantum computers and realizing atomic clocks, including the most precise instrument humankind has ever made. Penning traps are powerful tools for mass spectrometry and measuring magnetic dipole moments.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.