This half-day-long short course is intended for those who wish to understand and operate high vacuum pumping systems used in semiconductor manufacturing. Mechanical pumps covered include rotary vane, lobe, claw, multistage lobe, dry piston, scroll, and screw. High vacuum pump and systems include turbo and cryogenic pumps. This course also offers practical advice for operators, engineers, and maintenance personnel. It highlights useful and informative Best Practices for operating complex vacuum systems, e.g., guidance that would have been acquired historically through mentoring by experienced colleagues. However, rapid technical developments, and frequent career changes or added responsibilities, have left both experienced and new technologists in need of a reliable and concise information source. It is hoped that this material will help to replace the historic mentoring that is necessary to understand and operate modern vacuum systems.

1. Working in the Vacuum Environment:

We begin by describing commonly used vacuum technology terms and concepts:

1. Useful terms and definitions, and
2. Pump operating regions.

2. Mechanical Pumps:

The construction, characteristics, operating principles, and applications of the several mechanical pumps are reviewed:

1. Rotary vane,
2. Roots, claw, and multi-stage Roots,
3. Dry piston, scroll, and screw, and
4. Best Practices: Mechanical pumps

3. Turbo Pump Systems:

The construction, characteristics, and operating principle of the turbo pump, and the operation of a typical turbo pump system are presented:

1. Turbo pump construction & operating principles,
2. Turbo drag pumps,
3. Starting, cycling, and removing power, and
4. Best Practices: Turbo pump systems

4. Cryogenic Pump Systems:

Construction, characteristics, and the operating principle of a helium-gas refrigerated cryogenic pump, and operation of a typical cryopump system are described:

1. Cryo pump construction and operation,
2. Cryo-condensation and cryo-sorption pumping,
3. Starting, cycling, and removing power,
4. Regeneration and maintenance, and
5. Best Practices: Cryo pump systems.