When engineers need to pass signal and power wires through vacuum and pressure chambers, using an off-the-shelf bulkhead connector can trigger electrical problems, raise costs, and constrain designs. A better alternative is the use of feedthroughs having air-tight epoxy seals. Electrical feedthroughs allow conductors in a wire harness to pass through the wall of the chamber with no loss of vacuum or pressure. Design flexibility allows for configurations not possible with off-the-shelf connectors. Contact resistance and voltage drop issues affecting connectors are eliminated. The elimination improves the electrical performance. Most feedthrough applications are permanently sealed. The design provides resistance and sealing to mechanical stresses with electrical loss kept to a minimum. Typical uses of the electrical feedthroughs include:Space-simulation vacuum chambers

·         Military ordinance-control applications

·         Medical imaging systems

·         Semiconductor wafer-processing equipment

·         High-voltage electrical switches

A particular use example is with glove boxes. Laboratory, medical, and nuclear glove boxes need seals that are reliable and failsafe to protect operators and content. Handling biohazard material in research labs and containing inert atmosphere in nuclear fueling devices are glove box applications where epoxy feedthroughs are used. Epoxy seals withstand hot nuclear environments. Connectors can be replaced without breaking the seal of a chamber or contaminating the environment on the outside. Epoxy feedthroughs have been tested for long-term performance electrically and hermetically. Epoxy feedthroughs offer the best application, flexibility. They are competitively priced and have a highly rated vacuum performance. Clear epoxy feedthroughs allow components to be visually inspected.