SIMULATION-BASED PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT INFICON, Liechtenstein ELEVATING THE PERFORMANCE OF IONIZATION GAUGES WITH SIMULATION To develop a better ionization gauge for measuring pressure in high-vacuum or ultra-high-vacuum (HV/UHV) environments, instrument manufacturer INFICON of Liechtenstein used multiphysics modeling to test and refine their new design. by ALAN PETRILLO Innovation often becomes a form of competition. It can be thought of as a race among creative people, where standardized tools measure progress toward the finish line. For many who strive for technological innovation, one such tool is the vacuum gauge. High-vacuum and ultra-high-vacuum (HV/UHV) environments are used for researching, refining, and producing many manufactured goods. But how can innovators be sure that pressure levels in their facility's vacuum chamber are truly aligned with those in other facilities? Without shared standards and reliable tools for meeting these standards, key performance metrics - for both the vacuum chambers and the products being tested - may not be comparable. W ยป GLOBAL COMPETITION YIELDS INNING PROTOTYPE FIGURE 1 The IRG080. Image provided by INFICON. 20a COMSOL NEWS FIGURE 2 A Bayard-Alpert hotfilament ionization gauge. Image provided by INFICON. The Ion Reference Gauge 080 (IRG080), designed and produced by INFICON, is the result of a multinational project to develop a better tool for quantifying pressure in HV/UHV environments. The development of this sensor was coordinated by the European Metrology Programme for Innovation and Research (EMPIR). EMPIR is a collaborative effort by private companies and government research organizations to help make Europe's " research and innovation system more competitive on a global scale " . The project participants considered multiple options before agreeing that INFICON's design best fulfilled the performance goals.