US2826709A - Arrangement for glow discharge tubes - Google Patents

Arrangement for glow discharge tubes Download PDF

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Publication number
US2826709A
US2826709A US561108A US56110856A US2826709A US 2826709 A US2826709 A US 2826709A US 561108 A US561108 A US 561108A US 56110856 A US56110856 A US 56110856A US 2826709 A US2826709 A US 2826709A
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gas
discharge
cathode
electrons
source
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Expired - Lifetime
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US561108A
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English (en)
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Ardenne Manfred Von
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J41/00—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas; Discharge tubes for evacuation by diffusion of ions
    • H01J41/02—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas
    • H01J41/06—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas with ionisation by means of cold cathodes
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J27/00—Ion beam tubes
    • H01J27/02—Ion sources; Ion guns
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J27/00—Ion beam tubes
    • H01J27/02—Ion sources; Ion guns
    • H01J27/08—Ion sources; Ion guns using arc discharge
    • H01J27/10—Duoplasmatrons ; Duopigatrons
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J41/00—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas; Discharge tubes for evacuation by diffusion of ions
    • H01J41/02—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas
    • H01J41/04—Discharge tubes for measuring pressure of introduced gas or for detecting presence of gas with ionisation by means of thermionic cathodes

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to glowdischarge tubes,- and more particularly to an arrangement for such tubes providing a high plasma density at low pressures of neutral gas therein.
  • Fig. l is a side elevation, partly shown in section, of a first embodiment of the present invention
  • Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic section of part of a second embodiment of the present invention.
  • Fig. 3 is a diagrammaticsection of part of a thir embodiment of the present invention.
  • a densimeter is shown for high vacuum tubes with light spectroscopic gas indication and operating with, for example, hydrogen as test gas.
  • the apparatus shown in Fig. 1 operates with a gas discharge from a cold cathode in the manner of the well known Penning discharge with pendulum motion of the electrons.
  • a glass vessel or. tube 40 is evacuated so that the residual gas, for instance hydrogen, has a pressure amounting, for instance to 10- millimeters of mercury.
  • a magnetic lens generally denoted by the reference numeral 30 includes two pole pieces 12, 22 having inner walls forming a bore 26.
  • the pole pieces are arranged within the glass tube 40 and separatedv from each other by a gap 14.
  • the pole pieces 12, 22 serve as cathodes and are connected with a metal tube 16 which in turn is connected with a connecting piece or bus bar 32 sealed into the wall of the glass tube 40
  • the terminal 34 connected to ground is connected by a conductor 36 to the bus bar 32.
  • a ring-shaped anode 38 is arranged symmetrically to the walls thereof pieces 12, 22 in the gap 14 of the pole andconnected by a conductor with another conductor 2t) and throughan ammeter 24 and a resistor 28 to a te1'minal43'.
  • the terminals 43 and 34 are connected, respectively, with the positive and negative terminals (notshown) of a direct current source.
  • the glass tube 40 is formed with an annular end portion 42 which serves to accommodate a metal cylinder 44 connected to the metal tube 16 andin heat conducave contact with the pole pieces 12-and 22 so as to eificiently cool the same through said end portion.
  • a reflecting mirror 54' is preferably arranged at one end of the bore 26 between the pole pieces 12, 22.
  • a cold gas discharge is caused by the potential difference' applied by the voltagesource (not shown) to the ring-shaped anode 38 and the cathode 12 22.
  • the tube 16 operates as a Penning vacuometer in which under the influence of the magnetic field of the permanent magnet 58 the otherwise very extended volume of the discharge is concentrated by'2-3 orders of magnitude.
  • the concentration of the discharge in the plasma filling the bore 26 and the gap 14 follows substantially the following equaltion where jea is thecurrent density in the anode space, jec' the current density in the cathode space, and where H, and H' are the magnetic field intensities, respectively, in the anode and cathode spaces.
  • the magnetic field is inhomogeneous in such a manner that the field 1-1,, in the anode space is very strong in comparison to the field H in the cathode space.
  • the electrons of the plasma of a gas discharge and also the primary electrons originating from the cathode drop may be magnetically condensed, the effectiveness of this method being only slightly affected by collisions of the electrons with the gas provided a relativel y low pressure of the neutral gas amounting to less than 1' millimeter of mercury an'd a small discharge volume below about 5 cubic cm; are applied.
  • gas discharges in a gas having an as low as possible neutral gas density and an as small as possible volume are of great technical importance for special discharges such as spectroscopic vacuum densimeters and ion sources;
  • Very inhomogeneous magnetic fields may be produced in different ways as is well kn own in the art', especially as" axially symmetrical and asymmetrical fields.
  • the pole piece lens described hereinabove allows obtaining an axially symmetrical field shape particularly suitable for the present invention at a field volume rendered small owing to the gas collisions.
  • Fig. 1 The embodiment shown in Fig. 1 is not limited to this application but may be further developed in any desired manner.
  • a further application in which it is of great importance to obtain a dense plasma at as low as possible a pressure of the neutral gas is found, for instance, in the field of ionsources.
  • high plasma density is desirable in order to emit the ion current from the ion emitting opening at a high ion current density.
  • a low density of the neutral gas is desired so that from the ion emitting opening as small as possible a quantity of neutral gas di'lfuses into the jet space, so that the source has a high efficiency.
  • a thermal cathode 112 shaped as a stirrup is arranged with the front part 118 thereof in the bore 117 of a magnetic pole piece lens generally denoted by 120 in a range of a low magnetic field intensity.
  • the pole piece 114 of the magnetic lens 120 is maintained by a terminal 122 at the same negative potential as that at which the thermal cathode 112 is maintained by the terminal 124.
  • the other pole piece 115 of the magnetic lens 120 forms the anode of the condensed discharge and is connected by the terminal 126 to a source of positive potential.
  • the other pole piece or anode 115 of the magnetic lens 120 is provided with an annular insert 116 consisting of a high melting temperature material such as molybdenum or tungsten, the annular insert 116 having an opening 130 forming an extension of the bore 117.
  • the glass vessel containing the rarefied gas and the electrodes is not shown in Figs. 2 and 3.
  • the electrons are emitted as a cone 113 from the front part 118 of the thermal cathode 112.
  • the cone 113 extends as far as the bore of the annular insert 116 of the anode 115.
  • the thermal cathode 212 is helical and connected by the terminal 224 to a source of negative potential which is also applied by the terminal 222 to the pole piece 214 of the magnetic lens 220.
  • the pole piece 214 is milled on the side thereof facing the helical thermal cathode 212 and the source of electrons is formed by the plasma 213 in front of the cathode 212 so as to coincide for the greater part of its length with the bore 217 of the pole piece 214.
  • the cathode 212 is situated substantially outside the bore 217 in a space practically free of the magnetic field produced by the pole piece 214, and the plasma of the positive column sends the electrons in the shape of the cone 213 into the space of high magnetic field intensity defined by the end of the bore 217.
  • an annular insert 216 is arranged in a plane near the end of the bore 217, consisting preferably of molybdenum or tungsten which forms part of the anode 215 and which is connected by the terminal 226 with a source of positive potential.
  • a device for producing a high density plasma in a low pressure neutral gas atmosphere comprising, an evacuated envelope containing a residual neutral gas under low pressure, a source of electrons in said envelope, anode means spaced from said source of electrons operative to attract electrons from said source along a discharge path, and means for producing a magnetic field the lines of force of which extend along the discharge path between said source and said electron attracting means, the field strength of said magnetic field being relatively weak in the zone of said source as compared with its strength in the zone of said anode means.
  • a device for producing a high density plasma in a loW pressure neutral gas atmosphere comprising, an evacuated envelope containing a residual neutral gas under low pressure, a source of electrons in said envelope, anode means spaced from said source of electrons operative to attract electrons from said source along a discharge path,
  • said magnetic pole shoe lens comprises a magnetic lens member comprising said anode means, and wherein said lens member is provided with an axial bore for permitting suction therethrongh of ions in said discharge plasma.
  • a device for producing a high density plasma in a low pressure neutral gas atmosphere comprising, an evacuated envelope containing a residual neutral gas under low pressure, a magnetic lens in said envelope comprising a pair of spaced pole shoes having aligned axial bores, spaced cathode and anode means in said envelope and within said magnetic lens operative to produce an electron current flow therebetween, said magnetic lens being operative to produce an inhomogeneous magnetic field the lines of force of which are of greater strength in the vicinity of said anode means than in the vicinity of said cathode means.
  • the discharge device as defined in claim 7 including a magnet arranged outside of said envelope and having a pair of pole members disposed in closely spaced relation with respect to one each of said pole pieces, and transverse openings in one of said pole members and the adjacent one of said pole pieces to allow inspection of the plasma in said lens by means of a pocket spectroscope.
  • the discharge device as defined in claim 8 including a second opening in the other of said pole pieces in alignment with the opening of said first pole piece, and a mirror seated in said second opening for reflecting additional light from the plasma being observed by the spectroscope.

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Investigating, Analyzing Materials By Fluorescence Or Luminescence (AREA)
  • Electron Sources, Ion Sources (AREA)
US561108A 1955-05-10 1956-01-24 Arrangement for glow discharge tubes Expired - Lifetime US2826709A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
DEA22652A DE1058638B (de) 1955-05-10 1955-05-10 Anordnung zur Herstellung einer hohen Plasmadichte bei kleinem Neutralgasdruck

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US2826709A true US2826709A (en) 1958-03-11

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US561108A Expired - Lifetime US2826709A (en) 1955-05-10 1956-01-24 Arrangement for glow discharge tubes

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US (1) US2826709A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
CH (1) CH335768A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
DE (1) DE1058638B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
GB (1) GB806787A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
NL (1) NL197973A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)

Cited By (15)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2892114A (en) * 1958-05-06 1959-06-23 Wallace D Kilpatrick Continuous plasma generator
US2919370A (en) * 1958-10-28 1959-12-29 Plasmadyne Corp Electrodeless plasma torch and method
US2920234A (en) * 1958-05-27 1960-01-05 John S Luce Device and method for producing a high intensity arc discharge
US2920235A (en) * 1958-07-24 1960-01-05 Persa R Bell Method and apparatus for producing intense energetic gas discharges
US2926276A (en) * 1959-06-02 1960-02-23 Saburo M Moriya Apparatus for the ionization of electrons of flowable materials
US2961559A (en) * 1959-08-28 1960-11-22 Jr John Marshall Methods and means for obtaining hydromagnetically accelerated plasma jet
US3003080A (en) * 1959-05-27 1961-10-03 Richard F Post Apparatus for minimizing energy losses from magnetically confined volumes of hot plasma
US3007072A (en) * 1959-01-29 1961-10-31 Gen Electric Radial type arc plasma generator
US3029199A (en) * 1958-05-20 1962-04-10 William R Baker Plasma device
US3120476A (en) * 1958-04-28 1964-02-04 Richard F Post Pyrotron process and apparatus utilizing enhancement principle
US3164739A (en) * 1960-07-20 1965-01-05 Vakutronik Veb Ion source of a duo-plasmatron
US3226592A (en) * 1959-07-15 1965-12-28 Bristol Siddeley Engines Ltd Apparatus for producing a high velocity jet consisting of a plasma of ions and electrons
US3287589A (en) * 1960-03-08 1966-11-22 Siemens Ag Electron-collision ion source, particularly for electric mass spectrometers
US4088966A (en) * 1974-06-13 1978-05-09 Samis Michael A Non-equilibrium plasma glow jet
EP3578943A4 (en) * 2017-03-13 2021-03-24 Canon Anelva Corporation COLD CATHODE IONIZATION GAUGE AND COLD CATHODE IONIZATION GAUGE CARTRIDGE

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
NL278366A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) * 1961-05-27

Citations (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US1498536A (en) * 1920-08-02 1924-06-24 Baruch Sydney Norton Apparatus for producing continuous electrical oscillations
GB335537A (en) * 1928-10-03 1930-09-24 Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Improvements relating to vacuum tubes of the auto-electronic or non-thermic type
US2217187A (en) * 1936-02-01 1940-10-08 Raytheon Mfg Co Electrical discharge apparatus
US2352657A (en) * 1941-06-09 1944-07-04 Teletype Corp Electromagnetically controlled thermionic relay
US2440851A (en) * 1944-03-08 1948-05-04 Rca Corp Electron discharge device of the magnetron type
US2502236A (en) * 1945-09-12 1950-03-28 Raytheon Mfg Co Gaseous discharge device
US2712097A (en) * 1950-04-11 1955-06-28 Auwaerter Max High Vacuum Measuring Device

Family Cites Families (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
NL59155C (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) * 1940-07-27

Patent Citations (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US1498536A (en) * 1920-08-02 1924-06-24 Baruch Sydney Norton Apparatus for producing continuous electrical oscillations
GB335537A (en) * 1928-10-03 1930-09-24 Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Improvements relating to vacuum tubes of the auto-electronic or non-thermic type
US2217187A (en) * 1936-02-01 1940-10-08 Raytheon Mfg Co Electrical discharge apparatus
US2352657A (en) * 1941-06-09 1944-07-04 Teletype Corp Electromagnetically controlled thermionic relay
US2440851A (en) * 1944-03-08 1948-05-04 Rca Corp Electron discharge device of the magnetron type
US2502236A (en) * 1945-09-12 1950-03-28 Raytheon Mfg Co Gaseous discharge device
US2712097A (en) * 1950-04-11 1955-06-28 Auwaerter Max High Vacuum Measuring Device

Cited By (16)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3120476A (en) * 1958-04-28 1964-02-04 Richard F Post Pyrotron process and apparatus utilizing enhancement principle
US2892114A (en) * 1958-05-06 1959-06-23 Wallace D Kilpatrick Continuous plasma generator
US3029199A (en) * 1958-05-20 1962-04-10 William R Baker Plasma device
US2920234A (en) * 1958-05-27 1960-01-05 John S Luce Device and method for producing a high intensity arc discharge
US2920235A (en) * 1958-07-24 1960-01-05 Persa R Bell Method and apparatus for producing intense energetic gas discharges
US2919370A (en) * 1958-10-28 1959-12-29 Plasmadyne Corp Electrodeless plasma torch and method
US3007072A (en) * 1959-01-29 1961-10-31 Gen Electric Radial type arc plasma generator
US3003080A (en) * 1959-05-27 1961-10-03 Richard F Post Apparatus for minimizing energy losses from magnetically confined volumes of hot plasma
US2926276A (en) * 1959-06-02 1960-02-23 Saburo M Moriya Apparatus for the ionization of electrons of flowable materials
US3226592A (en) * 1959-07-15 1965-12-28 Bristol Siddeley Engines Ltd Apparatus for producing a high velocity jet consisting of a plasma of ions and electrons
US2961559A (en) * 1959-08-28 1960-11-22 Jr John Marshall Methods and means for obtaining hydromagnetically accelerated plasma jet
US3287589A (en) * 1960-03-08 1966-11-22 Siemens Ag Electron-collision ion source, particularly for electric mass spectrometers
US3164739A (en) * 1960-07-20 1965-01-05 Vakutronik Veb Ion source of a duo-plasmatron
US4088966A (en) * 1974-06-13 1978-05-09 Samis Michael A Non-equilibrium plasma glow jet
EP3578943A4 (en) * 2017-03-13 2021-03-24 Canon Anelva Corporation COLD CATHODE IONIZATION GAUGE AND COLD CATHODE IONIZATION GAUGE CARTRIDGE
EP4016035A1 (en) * 2017-03-13 2022-06-22 Canon Anelva Corporation Cold cathode ionization gauge and cold cathode ionization gauge cartridge

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
NL197973A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
CH335768A (de) 1959-01-31
DE1058638B (de) 1959-06-04
GB806787A (en) 1958-12-31

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