Patent ID: 7394339

Claim:
A voltage-isolating apparatus comprising: at least two passageways configured so that each passageway is a continuous tubular structure and wherein the outer diameter of each passageway is approximately in the range of 0.0625-0.25 inches, each passageway having two openings wherein each opening is configured to be connected to external components and capable of being sealed such that a low pressure environment can be sustained within each passageway, each passageway being suitable for transferring gas at a relatively low flow rate; a first and a second magnet positioned along opposite and exterior surfaces of each of the passageways wherein the first and second magnets impose a magnetic field in a transverse direction with respect to a lengthwise axis of each of the passageways, the transverse magnetic field tending to reduce the potential energy of charged particles traveling through each of the passageways; the first magnet oriented so that a first pole of the first magnet is positioned adjacent to the external surface of an associated passageway and an opposite second pole of the first magnet is positioned away from the associated passageway; and the second magnet is oriented so that a second pole of the second magnet, said second pole having an opposite polarity from the first pole of the first magnet, is positioned adjacent to the an external surface of the associated passageway opposite from the first magnet and the opposite first pole of the second magnet is positioned away from the associated passageway, thereby the arrangement of the magnets enables the first and second magnets to be oriented such that opposite poles face each other across the passageway.