Characteristics of an electrostatically-driven gas valve under high-pressure conditions

We previously proposed a new type of electrostatically-driven gas valve enabling large conductance for rarefied gas conditions. In this paper, we report the capability of our gas valve under high pressure conditions on the order of several times the atmospheric pressure. For proper valve operation, the electrostatic force must prevail against the gas flow. We have experimentally examined the ultimate valve operation pressure difference which depends on the applied voltage and the port size. The valve works against a higher pressure difference when the port aperture size is smaller or the applied voltage is larger. A gas valve with a 45/spl times/45 /spl mu/m port aperture size successfully operates air of 0.3 MPa when the applied voltage is 250 V.