The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 16, 1997
Filed:
Jan. 17, 1996
Ulrich Patz, Linsengericht, DE;
Michael Scherer, Rodenbach, DE;
Willi Neff, Kelmis, BE;
Klaus Pochner, Aachen, DE;
Leybold AG, Hanau am Main, DE;
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Forderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., Munich, DE;
Abstract
A barrier discharge device (4a, 4b, 4c) installed in a vacuum chamber (1) consists essentially of at least two facing electrodes (20, 22); a dielectric (22) situated between the electrodes (20, 22) and in the immediate proximity of one of these electrodes (20); and a power source (26), which is connected electrically to the electrodes (20, 22). The plasma particles and UV radiation generated during the electrical discharge between the electrodes (20, 22) pass through the electrode (22), which is permeable to UV radiation and plasma particles, and thus emerge from the discharge space. On the surfaces (5a, 5b), the UV radiation induces a photochemical cleaning process, and the impinging plasma particles induce a plasma-chemical cleaning process. The cleaning process is essentially independent of pressure and can be used at pressures of up to 10 bars, which means that the cleaning process can be operated in particular during the time in which the vacuum chamber (1) is being pumped out.