This document contains recommendations for terminology in mass spectrometry.
Development of standard terms dates back to 1974 when the IUPAC Commission on
Analytical Nomenclature issued recommendations on mass spectrometry terms and
definitions. In 1978, the IUPAC Commission on Molecular Structure and
Spectroscopy updated and extended the recommendations and made further
recommendations regarding symbols, acronyms, and abbreviations. The IUPAC
Physical Chemistry Division Commission on Molecular Structure and Spectroscopy’s
Subcommittee on Mass Spectroscopy revised the recommended terms in 1991 and
appended terms relating to vacuum technology. Some additional terms related to
tandem mass spectrometry were added in 1993 and accelerator mass spectrometry in
1994. Owing to the rapid expansion of the field in the intervening years,
particularly in mass spectrometry of biomolecules, a further revision of the
recommendations has become necessary. This document contains a comprehensive
revision of mass spectrometry terminology that represents the current consensus
of the mass spectrometry community.