Company Profile
IONICON Analytik was founded 1998 as a spin-off company of the University of Innsbruck, Austria commercializing an innovative technology called Proton Transfer Reaction - Mass Spectrometry. Since then we have been improving this leading-edge technology resulting in the development of several types of ultra sensitive high resolution online mass spectrometers for monitoring and quantification of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in sub-pptv level concentrations.
Today we are the world’s leading producer of trace gas analyzers with market-leading, real-time, single-digit pptv-level detection limits using the unique Proton Transfer Reaction – Mass Spectrometry (PTR-MS) and Selective Reagent Ionization – Mass Spectrometry (SRI-MS) technology. Our product portfolio comprises our renowned PTR-TOF instruments, air monitoring solutions and custom built TOF-MS, complemented by our own range of trace calibration devices and accessories.
We developed our own "ioniTOF" time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer platform that we produce in-house for our PTR-TOF series instruments and APi-TOF systems. We also strive to let others benefit from our customizable, affordable ioniTOF ecosystem for research and OEM applications.
Since 1998, we are serving our customers in many different application areas including atmospheric chemistry, environmental research, mobile labs and trace gas analysis (e.g. emissions in urban and remote areas, indoor spaces, vehicles), food and flavor science (e.g. analysis of coffee, olive oil, butter, cheese, wine, herbal extracts and aromas, e-cigarettes & "ENDS"), industrial VOC monitoring (e.g. in chemical factories and semiconductor cleanrooms) and illicit substances detection (Explosives, CWAs, TICs). We have also developed special knowledge in medical and biotechnological applications where real-time monitoring of industrial fermentation processes, of synthetic gas production processes in the petrochemical industry and real-time breath gas analysis in clinical settings e.g. for COVID-19 research, are carried out.
We also offer analytical services and are an active contributor to numerous international scientific research and training projects.
We proudly manufacture our precision instruments in Innsbruck, Austria.
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Milestones - our History
COVID was at the very heart of everything...for everybody. This is also true for us, e.g. when we supported COVID-19 research all over the planet. We feel deeply with those who suffered because of the global crisis.
For us, it was a year of team spirit, continued growth and prosperity which we are extremely grateful for.
It all started with increasing the performance of our PTR-TOF 4000 & 6000 series, the introduction of the proprietary SRI reagent ion NH4+, launch of the new EVR drift tube and lead to a record number in instrument sales within 2019. More than ever we served industrial customers with air monitoring solutions especially in the semiconductor industry. Given our success we’re glad to have grown our team substantially, also adding another office floor to our headquarters.
In early summer 2018 we got together celebrating an incredible success story which started with the sale of the first PTR-MS back in 1998: 20 Years IONICON - The World's Leading PTR-MS Company.
2018 was not even half done, but we already scored the second award for CHARON-PTR-TOFMS - the LABORPRAXIS application award 2018 - and launched the new "ioni" APi-TOF, for which we received the 2018 Analytical Scientist Innovation Award at the end of 2018.
After two years of double-digit growth in sales, in spring 2017 we launched our new flagship PTR-TOF 6000 X2 instrument. As a milestone in our history, all new IONICON instruments now exclusively rely on the ioniTOF - our new modular time-of-flight platform for all IONICON analyzers. In fall we presented CHARON - the 2017 innovation award winning revolution in real-time aerosol analysis with PTR-TOFMS.
In September 2016 we shipped the 300th PTR-MS to its new owner. We are proud of this achievement and grateful to those who went a part of the way together with us, from the first PTR-MS in back 1998 until the 300th PTR-MS.
We also introduced the revolutionary ION-BOOSTER funnel technology together with the new PTR-TOF 1000 ultra and presented our autosampler. Finally, we also launched the new PTR-TOF 4000 with the new hexapole ION-GUIDE.
The fastGC for our PTR-TOFMS series was launched: fast chemical pre-separation with the new fastGC add-on for ultra-fast chemical pre-separation in combination with real-time trace gas analysis. The novelty and benefits of the fastGC convinced two award juries and won it the "Golden Gas Award" as well as "The Analytical Scientist Innovation Award" 2015. We say: "thank you" for these accolades and for an all-time high in sales turnover.
Our investments in and focus on R&D during the last couple of years culminated in the PTR-TOF 1000 - our smallest, most lightweight and also most affordable PTR-TOF system - the first instrument based on our own time-of-flight mass spectrometer, developed and produced by IONICON: the ioniTOF.
Founded in 1998 with the sale of our first instrument and one employee, IONICON became the world's leading PTR-MS company. Our success and growth was only possible because of you, the PTR-MS community who contributed, supported and made us striving for excellence every single day since July 14, 1998. On this very day, 15 years later, we would like to say: "thank you"!
A new decade in analytical instrumentation from IONICON became available in 2012. Inspired by the success with Selective Reagent Ionization - Mass Spectrometry using O2+ and NO+ for ionization, SRI+ was introduced now featuring Kr+ as reagent ion. Nearly all volatile substances since then can be detected with a single IONICON mass spectrometer.
We launched the 4th generation of our PTR-MS evolution succeeding the world's bestselling PTR-MS series. The PTR-QMS 500 series was, back then, the benchmark for ultra low detection limits in quadrupole based PTR-MS systems.
In the same year Lukas Märk was appointed the new CEO of IONICON.
Our growth over the last decade continued and again we needed more office and production space. At the beginning of 2010 IONICON moved to our current location where we occupied more than double the space than before. In 2010 we launched the new PTR-QMS 300 small and lightweight PTR-MS and once again broke our sales turnover record.
In 2009 we launched SRI (Selective Reagent Ions), reached for the first time ever a sub-pptv detection limit (ppqv-range) with an off-the-shelve PTR-MS instrument and launched a second PTR-TOFMS system.
The year was dedicated to celebrate but also to innovate: we were able to provide key research facilities all over the world with our new PTR-TOF 8000 instruments, a revolution in online mass spectrometry and for many years our bestseller.
The first PTR-TOF-MS was launched and the first automated industrial VOC monitoring solution was sold. For the first time ever we sold more than 20 instruments in a year and increased our staff to 10 full-time employees.
With a new corporate design, new brochures, a new website featuring easily accessible information as well as more online support and a dedicated mission committed to our customers, the very successful spin-off company started to present itself in a new and professional manner.
The third evolution of PTR-MS instruments, being the first revision of our High-Sensitivity PTR-MS, was launched. Fully software-controlled, improved overall performance and other major developments such as an online detection down to 5 pptv made this system the top-selling PTR-MS at that time.
Ionimed Analytik GmbH was founded focusing on PTR-MS applications in medical and biotechnological research and together we moved to a new and larger office building at the technical campus of the University of Innsbruck. In 2013 we merged both companies.
Development of the first High-Sensitivity "HS" PTR-MS and a compact PTR-MS instrument. The HS PTR-MS enabled atmospheric VOC real-time monitoring in the low-level pptv-range for the first time.
The Institute of Ion Physics together with IONICON convened the first International PTR-MS Conference, a starting point for the successful biennial events series.
The year 2001 was a dramatic turning point for the company: Prof. Werner Lindinger tragically died in an accident. Prof. Tilmann Märk stepped in to take over as CEO.
In the same year, IONICON doubled its sales turnover again and provided more than 10 instruments to scientists sharing Prof. Lindinger’s vision.
Soon three leading institutions realized the potential of PTR-MS and invested in this novel and unique technology already in 1999. We even built the first custom PTR-MS for use aboard a research aircraft.
Only one year later, in 2000, the number of instruments sold was doubled.
In 1998, several motivated scientists headed by Prof. Werner Lindinger and Prof. Tilmann Märk founded Ionicon Analytik GmbH with the purpose of making PTR-MS commercially available to the academic community.
It all began with one part-time employee and the sale of the first PTR-MS.
In 1995, Prof. Werner Lindinger and coworkers at the Institute developed the first laboratory-style PTR-MS (Proton Transfer Reaction – Mass Spectrometer).
In 1981, a SIFDT (Selected Ion Flow Drift Tube), the predecessor of PTR-MS, was constructed in the laboratories of the Institute of Ion Physics at the University of Innsbruck, Austria.