On Friday, December 19, 2003, at 03:11 AM, Dominic-Luc Webb wrote:
I didn't catch the error until the chamber was down to ~2 torr, and I was
turning on the cold trap. While I may have been exceptionally lucky, no
explosions or fires! To my utter surprise the Diff Pump still pumped the
chamber down as usual, and I didn't notice any unusual smells, like burnt oil.
Since that experience I've coated several optics, so all is well.
I don't think you were exceptionally lucky. I think explosions are
exceptional. Filthy messes and burnt oil all over the place I have
seen and smelled first hand. This was warning enough for me, especially
since I work with chemists who can rapidly emit sane physical
chemistry thinking and they too warn me of the potential worst case
scenario.
If one is concerned about this, one can even select oils according
to the physical properties that do not allow this.
My diff. pump uses a silicone fluid, specifically DC-704 (I think, I am
still waking up and my memory is less than stellar), so I assume (hah! there
he goes again assuming!) that I don't have to worry about this...
...........................................................
The problem with using bleeding edge technology is that the
blood that winds up on the floor is usually your own.
