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Initial results from ground-based testing of an atomic oxygen sensor designed for use in earth orbit

Initial results from ground-based testing of an atomic oxygen sensor designed for use in earth orbit
Initial results from ground-based testing of an atomic oxygen sensor designed for use in earth orbit
Many sensors have been applied to the problem of measuring neutral atomic oxygen fluxes in low Earth orbit. The techniques used to date tend to suffer from several key disadvantages, variously: large mass and power budgets, large size, high cost, the ability to make only one measurement and poor time resolution. In this article preliminary results from ground-based testing of a novel atomic oxygen sensor based on a semiconducting metal oxide are reported. Such sensors are simple and relatively cheap while also requiring small power and mass budgets and, most importantly, are reusable. The sensors have been used in laboratory experiments to investigate the axial variation of atomic oxygen flux in a pulsed laser atomic oxygen source; the results compare well with readings taken with a carbon-coated quartz crystal microbalance. A small instrument based on these sensors has been designed and built for application on the UK's STRV-1c microsatellite
0034-6748
2500 -2506
Osborne, J.J.
be387a9d-9643-43f6-bd4a-9a5431d56200
Roberts, G.T.
deaf59ac-e4ee-4fc2-accf-df0639d39368
Chambers, A.R.
74fa9b7e-6362-478e-a038-15f2828c5446
Gabriel, S.B.
ac76976d-74fd-40a0-808d-c9f68a38f259
Osborne, J.J.
be387a9d-9643-43f6-bd4a-9a5431d56200
Roberts, G.T.
deaf59ac-e4ee-4fc2-accf-df0639d39368
Chambers, A.R.
74fa9b7e-6362-478e-a038-15f2828c5446
Gabriel, S.B.
ac76976d-74fd-40a0-808d-c9f68a38f259

Osborne, J.J., Roberts, G.T., Chambers, A.R. and Gabriel, S.B. (1999) Initial results from ground-based testing of an atomic oxygen sensor designed for use in earth orbit. Review of Scientific Instruments, 70 (5), 2500 -2506. (doi:10.1063/1.1149782).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Many sensors have been applied to the problem of measuring neutral atomic oxygen fluxes in low Earth orbit. The techniques used to date tend to suffer from several key disadvantages, variously: large mass and power budgets, large size, high cost, the ability to make only one measurement and poor time resolution. In this article preliminary results from ground-based testing of a novel atomic oxygen sensor based on a semiconducting metal oxide are reported. Such sensors are simple and relatively cheap while also requiring small power and mass budgets and, most importantly, are reusable. The sensors have been used in laboratory experiments to investigate the axial variation of atomic oxygen flux in a pulsed laser atomic oxygen source; the results compare well with readings taken with a carbon-coated quartz crystal microbalance. A small instrument based on these sensors has been designed and built for application on the UK's STRV-1c microsatellite

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Published date: 1999

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 23730
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/23730
ISSN: 0034-6748
PURE UUID: 342c2bb4-1262-4a84-bbad-a88cee60c68f

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Date deposited: 05 Feb 2007
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 06:49

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Contributors

Author: J.J. Osborne
Author: G.T. Roberts
Author: A.R. Chambers
Author: S.B. Gabriel

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