Isotopic measurements using ICP-MS: a tutorial review

Abstract

The isotopic information provided by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) is revised from a tutorial point of view covering both the use of enriched stable isotopes and the measurement of natural variations in the isotopic composition of the elements. These two topics are usually treated separately in the literature, although they share many fundamental principles. So, we have focused on the similarities between both fields and describe different concepts from basic terminology, sources of bias and reproducibility of isotope ratio measurements for constant and transient signals. The different application fields are also described in detail covering the use of enriched stable isotopes for Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry (IDMS) and other tracer applications and the measurement of natural variations using multi-collector (MC) instruments. The discussion includes examples from the authors' work to show methods and equations for the processing of static and transient signals.