Additive · Future bench (tested)
Printed chambers: Ti-6Al-4V, AlSi10Mg
AM Tivalues describe: Ti-6Al-4V SLM
Quantum hardwareBig science (accelerators, light sources, public fusion)
What it enables
Topology-optimized monolithic UHV chambers, 70 percent lighter: printed titanium holds low 1e-10 mbar with outgassing indistinguishable from a conventional flange, and 2-year vacuum holds are demonstrated.
Status and pusher
Driven by quantum sensor programs (Birmingham and Nottingham lineage) and commercial chamber makers.
Watch out
Porosity and virtual leaks are process-control problems, largely solved for LPBF.
Properties
The values below are candidate: compiled from the sources named, not yet individually validated. Provisional provenance: Additive manufacturing vacuum qualification studies.
Wet cleaning
| Recipe | HIP, then machine the sealing faces, then chemical polish internal surfaces if access allows, then bake long |
|---|---|
| Forbidden | trusting an as-built internal surface; trapped powder is a virtual leak you cannot find |
| Limit | powder removal from internal channels, and how you would verify it |
Vacuum and outgassing
| Outgassing, unbaked (10 h) | 5e-9 mbar·L/s/cm² |
|---|---|
| Outgassing, baked | 5e-12 mbar·L/s/cm² |
| Vapour pressure | negligible |
Temperature
| Bake, assembled | 500 °C |
|---|---|
| Vacuum degas | 750 °C |
| Braze / H2 firing | 920 HIP °C |
| Metallurgical limit | HIP 920 °C / 100 MPa closes porosity |
Thermal
| CTE | 8.6 ppm/K |
|---|---|
| Thermal conductivity | 7 W/m·K |
| Specific heat | 560 J/kg·K |
| Emissivity | 0.4 as-built |
| Melting / softening | 1604–1660 °C |
Mechanical
| Strength | 900–1100 ys MPa |
|---|---|
| Tensile | 1000–1200 MPa |
| Elongation | 8–14 % |
| Young's modulus | 110 GPa |
| Hardness | 340 HV |
| Density | 4.43 g/cm3 |
Electrical and magnetic
| Relative permeability | 1.00005 |
|---|---|
| Resistivity | 170 µΩ·cm |
Engineering
| Corrosion | as wrought |
|---|---|
| Joining | weldable after HIP |
| Process notes | as-built roughness multiplies effective area by 2–5× |
| Availability and cost | service bureaux |