Chemical trace detection system

A chemical trace detection system, comprising:

• an ionization chamber defining a chamber volume;
• a drift tube coupled to the ionization chamber;
• a detector disposed within the drift tube;
• a voltage source to produce an electrical field in the drift tube;
• an ionizer positioned in the chamber volume to establish an ionization region within the chamber volume adjacent to the electrical field;
• and
• a desorber positionable within the chamber volume, the desorber including a sample holder to hold a sample immediately adjacent to the ionizer in the ionization region and a sample heater to desorb particles of the sample held in the sample holder such that the desorbed particles are introduced directly into the ionization region from the sample holder to form ionized molecules that are forced toward the detector by the electrical field.