Figure 1From: A coherent mathematical characterization of isotope trace extraction, isotopic envelope extraction, and LC-MS correspondenceAn LC-MS sample is composed of many instances of many classes of analyte. Each detected instance of an analyte is ionized to a charge state. The signal produced by each charged analyte is accumulated as a function of the mass of the analyte, its charge (together composing the mass-to-charge ratio (m/z)), and the time at which it is detected (dictated by the chromatographic system in use).Back to article page