A New Electrostatic Field Measuring Instrument

A sensor has been developed to measure electrostatic fields between a few tenths of a volt/cm and many thousands of volts/cm. The sensor replaces the rotating chopper in traditional electric field meters with a vibrating sensing disk. Since there are no frictional moving parts, the sensor is ideally suited for the space environment and long lifetime applications. The instrument weighs less than 2.0 pounds; the volume is less than 20 cubic inches. Input power is less than 2.0 watts. Output is two 0 to 5 volt telemetry signals indicating magnitude, sign, and decade multiplier of the electrostatic field.