While Mr. Penning no doubt appreciates having this gauge named after him,
one can get a better idea of how this gauge operates from its original
name - the cold cathode ionization gauge. Limiting the discussion
to the type we use here, the cathode is the outer cylinder of the gauge
tube. It is cold; that is, it is at ambient temperature. The
anode consists of a wire loop (tungsten, I believe) mounted in the center
of the tube and mounted to an electrical feed-through. A potential
of up to about 3KV is applied to the anode, which induces field emission
of electrons from the cathode. The electrons ionize gases inside
the vacuum chamber and the charged products are collected as a current.
This small current is a function of the chamber pressure (yippee) and the
species of gas present. There is a magnet mounted on the outside
of the gauge tube. Its function is to increase the path length traversed
by the electrons thus amplifying their effectiveness. And that's
pretty much it for how they work.
There are some typical problems with these types of gauges that one
should be aware of, however. First, they don't work if the vacuum
is too good (damn the bad luck). No, seriously, they stop
conducting
when the pressure drops somewhere below 10-7 Torr. Sometimes
one can initiate conduction by tapping the side of the gauge tube gently
with a metalic object. (yes, really) The shock can aid in
initiating
field emission. Some systems (none of ours) use UV sources to aid
in maintaining conduction. Secondly, they get dirty. Everything
that they ionize is collected on either the anode or the cathode - yuck.
After a while, they need to be cleaned. Of course, it is trivial
to check the condition of the gauge tube when the system is open.
This is always the best time. A dirty gauge will typicall read
irratically.
This can also be a symptom of outgassing, though. Lastly, they are
not terribly accurate. This isn't so important in our lab.
The key is to learn what is typical for your chamber and use that as a
guide. Staff can assist with calibration of the control units.
Contact Powell Barber or Greg Brown for assistance.
Ionization gauges are the most sensitive gauges for very low
pressures (also referred to as hard or high vacuum). They sense pressure
indirectly by measuring the electrical ions produced when the gas is
bombarded with electrons. Fewer ions will be produced by lower density
gases. The calibration of an ion gauge is unstable and dependent on the
nature of the gases being measured, which is not always known. They can
be calibrated against a McLeod gauge which is much more stable and independent of gas chemistry.
Thermionic emission generate electrons, which collide with gas atoms and generate positive ions. The ions are attracted to a suitably biased
electrode known as the collector. The current in the collector is
proportional to the rate of ionization, which is a function of the
pressure in the system. Hence, measuring the collector current gives the
gas pressure. There are several sub-types of ionization gauge.
- Useful range: 10−10 - 10−3 torr (roughly 10−8 - 10−1 Pa)
Most ion gauges come in two types: hot cathode and cold cathode. In the hot cathode
version, an electrically heated filament produces an electron beam. The
electrons travel through the gauge and ionize gas molecules around
them. The resulting ions are collected at a negative electrode. The
current depends on the number of ions, which depends on the pressure in
the gauge. Hot cathode gauges are accurate from 10−3 Torr to 10−10 Torr. The principle behind cold cathode
version is the same, except that electrons are produced in the
discharge of a high voltage. Cold Cathode gauges are accurate from 10−2 Torr to 10−9 Torr.
Ionization gauge calibration is very sensitive to construction
geometry, chemical composition of gases being measured, corrosion and
surface deposits. Their calibration can be invalidated by activation at
atmospheric pressure or low vacuum. The composition of gases at high
vacuums will usually be unpredictable, so a mass spectrometer must be used in conjunction with the ionization gauge for accurate measurement.[11]
Hot cathode
Bayard-Alpert hot-cathode ionization gauge
A hot-cathode ionization gauge is composed mainly of three electrodes acting together as a triode, wherein the cathode is the filament. The three electrodes are a collector or plate, a filament, and a grid. The collector current is measured in picoamps by an electrometer.
The filament voltage to ground is usually at a potential of 30 volts,
while the grid voltage at 180–210 volts DC, unless there is an optional electron bombardment
feature, by heating the grid, which may have a high potential of
approximately 565 volts. The most common ion gauge is the hot-cathode Bayard-Alpert gauge,
with a small ion collector inside the grid. A glass envelope with an
opening to the vacuum can surround the electrodes, but usually the Nude Gauge
is inserted in the vacuum chamber directly, the pins being fed through a
ceramic plate in the wall of the chamber. Hot-cathode gauges can be
damaged or lose their calibration if they are exposed to atmospheric
pressure or even low vacuum while hot. The measurements of a hot-cathode
ionization gauge are always logarithmic.
Electrons emitted from the filament move several times in back and
forth movements around the grid before finally entering the grid. During
these movements, some electrons collide with a gaseous molecule to form
a pair of an ion and an electron (Electron ionization). The number of these ions
is proportional to the gaseous molecule density multiplied by the
electron current emitted from the filament, and these ions pour into the
collector to form an ion current. Since the gaseous molecule density is
proportional to the pressure, the pressure is estimated by measuring
the ion current.
The low-pressure sensitivity of hot-cathode gauges is limited by the
photoelectric effect. Electrons hitting the grid produce x-rays that
produce photoelectric noise in the ion collector. This limits the range
of older hot-cathode gauges to 10−8 Torr and the Bayard-Alpert to about 10−10
Torr. Additional wires at cathode potential in the line of sight
between the ion collector and the grid prevent this effect. In the
extraction type the ions are not attracted by a wire, but by an open
cone. As the ions cannot decide which part of the cone to hit, they pass
through the hole and form an ion beam. This ion beam can be passed on
to a:
- Faraday cup
- Microchannel plate detector with Faraday cup
- Quadrupole mass analyzer with Faraday cup
- Quadrupole mass analyzer with Microchannel plate detector Faraday cup
- ion lens and acceleration voltage and directed at a target to form a sputter gun. In this case a valve lets gas into the grid-cage.
See also: Electron ionization
Cold cathode
There are two subtypes of cold-cathode ionization gauges: the Penning gauge (invented by Frans Michel Penning), and the Inverted magnetron, also called a Redhead gauge. The major difference between the two is the position of the anode with respect to the cathode. Neither has a filament, and each may require a DC potential of about 4 kV for operation. Inverted magnetrons can measure down to 1x10−12 Torr.
Likewise, cold-cathode gauges may be reluctant to start at very low
pressures, in that the near-absence of a gas makes it difficult to
establish an electrode current - in particular in Penning gauges, which
use an axially symmetric magnetic field to create path lengths for
electrons that are of the order of metres. In ambient air, suitable
ion-pairs are ubiquitously formed by cosmic radiation; in a Penning
gauge, design features are used to ease the set-up of a discharge path.
For example, the electrode of a Penning gauge is usually finely tapered
to facilitate the field emission of electrons.
Maintenance cycles of cold cathode gauges are, in general, measured
in years, depending on the gas type and pressure that they are operated
in. Using a cold cathode gauge in gases with substantial organic
components, such as pump oil fractions, can result in the growth of
delicate carbon films and shards within the gauge that eventually either
short-circuit the electrodes of the gauge or impede the generation of a
discharge path.
Calibration
Pressure gauges are either direct- or indirect-reading. Hydrostatic
and elastic gauges measure pressure are directly influenced by force
exerted on the surface by incident particle flux, and are called direct
reading gauges. Thermal and ionization gauges read pressure indirectly
by measuring a gas property that changes in a predictable manner with
gas density. Indirect measurements are susceptible to more errors than
direct measurements.
- Dead-weight tester
- McLeod
- mass spec + ionization
Dynamic transients
When fluid flows are not in equilibrium, local pressures may be
higher or lower than the average pressure in a medium. These
disturbances propagate from their source as longitudinal pressure
variations along the path of propagation. This is also called sound.
Sound pressure is the instantaneous local pressure deviation from the
average pressure caused by a sound wave. Sound pressure can be measured
using a microphone in air and a hydrophone in water. The effective sound pressure is the root mean square
of the instantaneous sound pressure over a given interval of time.
Sound pressures are normally small and are often expressed in units of
microbar.frequency response of pressure sensors resonance
Standards
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) has developed two
separate and distinct standards on pressure Measurement, B40.100 and
PTC 19.2. B40.100 provides guidelines on Pressure Indicated Dial Type
and Pressure Digital Indicating Gauges, Diaphragm Seals, Snubbers, and
Pressure Limiter Valves. PTC 19.2 provides instructions and guidance for
the accurate determination of pressure values in support of the ASME
Performance Test Codes. The choice of method, instruments, required
calculations, and corrections to be applied depends on the purpose of
the measurement, the allowable uncertainty, and the characteristics of
the equipment being tested. The methods for pressure measurement and the
protocols used for data transmission are also provides. Guidance is
given for setting up the instrumentation and determining the uncertainty
of the measurement. Information regarding the instrument type, design,
applicable pressure range, accuracy, output, and relative cost is
provided. Information is also provided on pressure-measuring devices
that are used in field environments i.e., Piston Gauges, Manometers, and
Low-Absolute-Pressure (Vacuum) Instruments. These methods are designed
to assist in the evaluation of measurement uncertainty based on current
technology and engineering knowledge, taking into account published
instrumentation specifications and measurement and application
techniques. This Supplement provides guidance in the use of methods to
establish the pressure-measurement uncertainty.
Refrence
1-Book: Coating fundamental and nanostructure analysis, jahanbakhsh mashaiekhy, iup,2015
2-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki