US 11,988,340 B2
Cryogenic cooling system with vent
Tim Foster, Abingdon (GB); and Neil Clarke, Abindgon (GB)
Assigned to Oxford Instruments Nanotechnology Tools Limited, Oxon (GB)
Appl. No. 17/636,801
Filed by OXFORD INSTRUMENTS NANOTECHNOLOGY TOOLS LIMITED, Oxon (GB)
PCT Filed Jul. 10, 2020, PCT No. PCT/GB2020/051670
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Feb. 18, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/032944, PCT Pub. Date Feb. 25, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 1911917 (GB), filed on Aug. 20, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0333740 A1, Oct. 20, 2022
Int. Cl. F17C 3/08 (2006.01); F25D 3/10 (2006.01)
CPC F17C 3/085 (2013.01) [F25D 3/10 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A cryogenic cooling system comprising:
a vessel extending along a longitudinal axis, wherein the vessel is configured to receive a sample probe movable along the longitudinal axis;
one or more cooling members thermally coupled to the vessel so as to produce a thermal gradient along the longitudinal axis of the vessel; and
a vent extending along the outside of the vessel, the vent configured to provide a pathway for a flow of gas in one direction only from an inlet of the vent to an outlet of the vent, wherein the inlet is in gaseous communication with the inside of the vessel, and wherein the outlet is in gaseous communication with an environment external to the vessel, wherein the inlet is arranged at a position along the vessel configured to obtain a temperature below 63 kelvin during operation of the one or more cooling members, and wherein the outlet is arranged at a position configured to maintain a temperature above 273 kelvin when the inlet has a temperature below 63 kelvin, the vent further comprising a pressure relief element configured to open and close said pathway in dependence on the pressure within the vessel such that, when the pressure of a gas inside the vessel exceeds a safety threshold, the pressure relief element is opened so as to enable a flow of said gas from the inside of the vessel to the environment external to the vessel.