A new anti-static technology to neutralize static electricity by high energy photon irradiation has been developed. Ions and electrons required for neutralization are generated by ionization of gas molecules in the vicinity of a charged substance. Gas molecules absorbs photons to become ionized. The wavelength chosen for the irradiation depends on the neutralization atmosphere. Soft X-rays with wavelength over about 1 are effective in air or O2 gas at pressure higher than several hundreds Torr. Vacuum UV-rays with wavelength below about 1350 is effective in N2 gas, Ar gas, or reduced pressure ambients. These methods feature excellent neutralization capa-bility. Electrostatic potential can be reduced to 0 V in a very short time without encountering the problems of which conven-tional corona discharge ionizers.

We deal with a new type ceramic emitter which is used in a cleanroom ionizer system and is composed of a needle-shaped silicon and a rod-shaped silicon carbide ceramics. The discharge test was carried out to investigate the particle generation from the emitter and the degradation of the emitter. As a result, it was found that the ceramic emitter had practically higher performance than a conventional tungsten emitter.