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US 9,960,026 B1Granted
Ion pump with direct molecule flow channel through anode
AssigneeColdQuanta, Inc.
InventorSteven Michael Hughes
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An ultra-high vacuum (UHV) system includes a UHV cell and an ion pump to maintain the UHV in the UHV cell. The ion pump has a GCC (glass, ceramic, or crystalline) housing. An interior wall of the ion-pump housing serves as an anode or bears a coating that serves as an anode. At least one cathode is disposed with respect to the housing so that it can cooperate with the anode to form an electric field for establishing a Penning trap. The GCC housing defines a flow channel that extends radially through the anode so that a molecule can flow directly into the most ionizing region of a Penning trap.
Claims4
A vacuum system comprising:
- an ion-pump housing, said ion-pump housing being a silicon monocrystal with first and second apertures machined therethrough to define a manifold, said first aperture defining a cylindrical wall that in turn defines an axis of cylindrical symmetry, a portion of said cylindrical wall either serving as a wall anode or bearing a coating that serves as a wall anode, said second aperture defining a hollow flow channel with a doped silicon wall, the hollow flow channel extending more orthogonal to than parallel to said axis of cylindrical symmetry through said wall anode, said hollow flow channel extending through said wall anode to a hollow interior of said cylindrical wall;
- and at least one cathode for cooperating with said anode to establish an electric field to generate free electrons at said cathode and to accelerate them toward said anode.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.