Full scan is useful in determining unknown compounds in a sample. It provides more information than SIM when it comes to confirming or resolving compounds in a sample. During instrument method development it may be common to first analyze test solutions in full scan mode to determine the retention time and the mass fragment fingerprint before moving to a SIM instrument method. Selective ion monitoring In selective ion monitoring (SIM) certain ion fragments are entered into the instrument method and only those mass fragments are detected by the mass spectrometer. The advantages of SIM are that the detection limit is lower since the instrument is only looking at a small number of fragments (e.g. three fragments) during each scan. More scans can take place each second. Since only a few mass fragments of interest are being monitored, matrix interferences are typically lower. To additionally confirm the likelihood of a potentially positive result, it is relatively important to be sure that the ion ratios of the various mass fragments are comparable to a known reference standard. Applications Environmental monitoring and cleanup GC-MS is becoming the tool of choice for tracking organic pollutants in the environment. The cost of GC-MS equipment has decreased significantly, and the reliability has increased at the same time, which has contributed to its increased adoption in environmental studies. Criminal forensics GC-MS can analyze the particles from a human body in order to help link a criminal to a crime. The analysis of fire debris using GC-MS is well established, and there is even an established American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) standard for fire debris analysis. GCMS/MS is especially useful here as samples often contain very complex matrices and results, used in court, need to be highly accurate. Law enforcement GC-MS is increasingly used for detection of illegal narcotics, and may eventually supplant drug-sniffing dogs.[1] A simple and selective GC-MS method for detecting marijuana usage was recently developed by the Robert Koch-Institute in Germany. It involves identifying an acid metabolite of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in marijuana, in urine samples by employing derivatization in the sample preparation. GC-MS is also commonly used in forensic toxicology to find drugs and/or poisons in biological specimens of suspects, victims, or the deceased. In drug screening, GC-MS methods frequently utilize liquid-liquid extraction as a part of sample preparation, in which target compounds are extracted from blood plasma. Sports anti-doping