IG9972BEN     (2017-09)     Plug-In Boards.om  5 
 
2 Description 
 
 
The CP300C9 board is a combined board containing one Pirani and one cold 
cathode measurement circuit. 
 
 
 
The Pirani measurement circuit has one gauge cable connector, two trimmer po-
tentiometers and one analog signal output. When the control unit is on, the Pirani 
measurement circuit is in continuous operation. The analog signal is constantly 
available, independent of what is shown on the pressure display. 
 
 
The cold cathode measurement circuit for the measurement of high and ultra high 
vacuum has one gauge cable connector and one analog signal output. When the 
gauge is turned on, the analog signals are constantly available, independent of 
what is shown on the pressure display. 
 
This measurement board contains special electronics to limit the measurement 
current to 100 µA, a feature that considerably extends the lifetime of the gauge. 
 
 
 
The IF300P board contains a RS232C interface and a Profibus-DP interface. The 
board has five relays with one floating changeover contact each. 
 
 
 
Within certain limits the thermal conductivity of gases is a function of the pressure. 
Pirani thermal conductivity vacuum gauges exploit this phenomenon for pressure 
measurements. 
The measurement element consists of a thin filament with a high temperature co-
efficient. The resistance of the wire and consequently its temperature are main-
tained at a constant value by means of a suitable control circuit. The electrical 
power supplied to the filament is, therefore, a measure of the thermal conductivity 
and consequently the gas pressure. 
 
 
 
The current flowing in a self-sustained gas discharge with a cold cathode (inverted 
magnetron) depends on the applied voltage, the gas composition, and the pres-
sure. A magnetic field that penetrates the measurement chamber has the effect 
that the electrons move along a spiral trajectory from the cathode to the anode and 
thereby cause even at low gas densities a sufficient number of ionizing impacts for 
maintaining the discharge. If (with a known gas type) the anode voltage and mag-
netic field are kept constant, the discharge current is a measure of the pressure. 
 
 
2.1  Pirani / Cold Cathode 
Measurement Board 
CP300C9 
Pirani measurement circuit 
Cold cathode measurement 
circuit 
2.2  Interface and Relay 
Board IF300P 
2.3 Pirani Measurement 
2.4 Cold Cathode 
Measurement