Newly developed standard conductance element for in situ calibration of high vacuum gauges

A new leak element, which is named as “standard conductance element (SCE)”, has been developed for in situ calibration of ionization gauges (IGs) and quadrupole mass spectrometers (QMSs). The SCE is made of a stainless-steel sintered filter with the pore size of less than 1 μm. Since the gas flow through the SCE satisfies the molecular flow condition even at the pressure up to 104 Pa, some useful characteristics of molecular flow are available. The SCE is supplied to users with a calibration certificate described its molecular conductance. Users can introduce optional test gases with the known flow rate to their vacuum chamber through the SCE in their laboratories. The overview of the SCE, the calibration method and recommended practices are introduced.

► A new leak element, “standard conductance element (SCE)”, has been developed.
► The gas flow through SCE satisfies the molecular flow condition up to 104 Pa.
► One of the advantages is that calibrations for various gas species are available.
► The overview of the SCE and the calibration method are introduced.