High sensitivity, large detection area particle sensor for vacuum applications
First Claim
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1. A particle sensor comprising:
- means for providing a high intensity light beam, said light beam having a thickness and a width along a cross-section;
means for compressing said thickness of said light beam without lessening said width of said light beam;
a detection area through which said light beam propagates, said detection area and said light beam being accessible to particles, said width of said light beam being substantially larger than said particles; and
photosensor means positioned in said detection area for sensing light scattered when particles pass through said light beam.
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Abstract
A particle sensor which employs the principle that a particle passing through an intense laser beam will scatter light to a photodetector which then generates a measurable signal is provided. The particle sensor uses prisms and a cylindrical lens to compress the laser beam to make it very thin along the axis of particle motion but very wide in the plane perpendicular to particle motion, thereby simultaneously providing high beam intensity for enhanced sensitivity and a large detection area. The optical components of the sensor are mounted on separate sections which allows the optical components to be separately aligned and changed so that the sensor may be easily adapted to various applications.
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Citations
8 Claims
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1. A particle sensor comprising:
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means for providing a high intensity light beam, said light beam having a thickness and a width along a cross-section; means for compressing said thickness of said light beam without lessening said width of said light beam; a detection area through which said light beam propagates, said detection area and said light beam being accessible to particles, said width of said light beam being substantially larger than said particles; and photosensor means positioned in said detection area for sensing light scattered when particles pass through said light beam. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification