Windowless gas discharge light source for the production of VUV light under vacuum conditions.

The HIS 13 can be operated with various discharge gases, such as helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon or hydrogen. In many applications it is operated with helium in the He I mode delivering a very narrow (1…3meV) emission line at 21.2 eV (584nm) that is commonly used for standard UPS. The pressure rise in the UHV analysis chamber during operation can be below 10-9 mbar.

The operation of the lamp is based on a cold cathode capillary discharge. There is a windowless direct sight connection between the discharge area and the target. The discharge current is electronically stabilised. The lamp is water cooled in order to allow for high discharge currents (up to 300 mA) and to reduce electrode degradation resulting in prolonged service intervals.

No outer part of the lamp is on high voltage, thus no shielding cage is needed. An integral portaligner faciliates the positioning of the light spot on the sample in a range of ± 3°.