Robert E. Finnigan
Robert E. Finnigan | |
|---|---|
Finnigan with Model 1020 GCMS/Data System, 1983 | |
| Born | Robert Emmet Finnigan May 27, 1927 Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
| Died | August 14, 2022 (aged 95) Palo Alto, California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Illinois, U.S. Naval Academy (Class of 1949) |
| Spouse |
Bette Van Horn (m. 1950) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry |
| Institutions | United States Air Force, Electronic Associates, Finnigan Instrument Corporation |
| Doctoral advisor | Gilbert Fett |
| External videos | |
|---|---|
| "Robert Finnigan -- Computerized GC/MS and Environmental Chemistry", Legends of Environmental Chemistry, 2008 |
Robert Emmet Finnigan (May 27, 1927 – August 14, 2022) was an American pioneer in the development of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry equipment (GC/MS). Finnigan founded the Scientific Instruments Division of Electronic Associates, Inc., producing the first commercial quadrupole mass spectrometer in 1964. He then formed Finnigan Instruments Corporation to combine a computer system with a quadrupole mass spectrometer and gas chromatograph. Finnigan's GC/MS/computer systems are used to detect and identify trace organic compounds, making them important instruments for the monitoring and protection of the environment. They were adopted by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as a standard instrument for monitoring water quality and were fundamental to the work of the EPA.