ION REFLECTRON COMPRISING A FLEXIBLE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

• Main Authors: CHARLES, HARRY, K, WIENHOLD, PAUL, D, CORNISH, TIMOTHY, J
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 05.06.2002
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; CASINGS OR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF ELECTRIC APPARATUS; ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS; ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; GAMMA RAY OR X-RAY MICROSCOPES; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; IRRADIATION DEVICES; MANUFACTURE OF ASSEMBLAGES OF ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS; MEASURING; NUCLEAR ENGINEERING; NUCLEAR PHYSICS; PHYSICS; PRINTED CIRCUITS; TECHNIQUES FOR HANDLING PARTICLES OR IONISING RADIATION NOTOTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TESTING

A novel technique utilizing the precision of printed circuit board design and the physical versatility of thin, flexible substrates is disclosed to produce a new type of ion reflector. A precisely defined series of thin conductive strips (traces) are etched onto a flat, flexible circuit board substrate. Preferably, the thin conductive strips are further apart at one end of the substrate and get increasingly closer towards the other end of the substrate. The flexible substrate is then rolled into a tube to form the reflector body, with the conductive strips forming the rings of the ion reflector. The spacing between the traces, and hence the ring spacing, can be readily varied by adjusting the conductor pattern on the substrate sheet during the etching process. By adjusting the spacing between the rings, the characteristics of the field created by the reflectron can be easily customized to the needs of the user.