M. Ueda et al., A NEW METHOD FOR DETECTING VACUUM LEAKAGE OF A PRESSURE SENSOR USING A PULSE DISCHARGE TECHNIQUE, Journal of physics. D, Applied physics, 30(4), 1997, pp. 703-707
A new method for estimating the degree of vacuum of a pressure sensor
has been proposed and demonstrated to be applicable for detecting vacu
um leakage. The principle of this method is based on the discharge cha
racteristics of Paschen's law. The shielding body case and the electro
de terminals in the sensor are employed as the electrodes for the disc
harge. The discharge potential is measured under a linearly increasing
voltage supply, and from this value the pressure in the sensor is est
imated. This method is very simple, offering nondestructive testing qu
ality. The measurable range is between 80 and 200 Pa, which is an impo
rtant pressure range for judging the occurrence of vacuum leakage in p
ressure sensors.