Recorded in our lab, 10/08/2007. Application of a high voltage causes droplets emerging from a hypodermic needle to break up into a fine mist. In this sequence, the voltage is gradually increased from 0 to 5 kilovolts. Note that the mist begins to form at around 3.5 kV. This phenomenon is called "electrospray," and forms the basis of a universal ion source for mass analysis of very heavy, involatile biological molecules like proteins and DNA. Our Yale colleague, Prof. John Fenn, introduced these ion sources in the early 1980's, and was awarded the 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this work.