Compact cantilever force probe for plasma pressure measurements
- Centro de FuSao Nuclear, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Associacao EURATOM/IST, Av. Rovisco Pais, 1049-001 Lisbon (Portugal)
A simple, compact cantilever force probe (CFP) has been developed for plasma pressure measurements. It is based on the pull-in phenomenon well known in microelectromechanical-system electrostatic actuators. The probe consists of a thin (25 {mu}m) titanium foil cantilever (38 mm of length and 14 mm of width) and a fixed electrode separated by a 0.75 mm gap. The probe is shielded by brass box and enclosed into boron nitride housing with a 9 mm diameter window for exposing part of cantilever surface to the plasma. When the voltage is applied between the cantilever and the electrode, an attractive electrostatic force is counterbalanced by cantilever restoring spring force. At some threshold (pull-in) voltage the system becomes unstable and the cantilever abruptly pulls toward the fixed electrode until breakdown occurs between them. The threshold voltage is sensitive to an additional externally applied force, while a simple detection of breakdown occurrence can be used to measure that threshold voltage value. The sensitivity to externally applied forces obtained during calibration is 0.28 V/{mu}N (17.8 V/Pa for pressure). However, the resolution of the measurements is {+-}0.014 mN ({+-}0.22 Pa) due to the statistical scattering in measured pull-in voltages. The diagnostic temporal resolution is {approx}10 ms, being determined by the dynamics of pull-in process. The probe has been tested in the tokamak ISTTOK edge plasma, and a plasma force of {approx}0.07 mN (plasma pressure {approx}1.1 Pa) has been obtained near the leading edge of the limiter. This value is in a reasonable agreement with the estimations using local plasma parameters measured by electrical probes. The use of the described CFP is limited by a heat flux of Q{approx}10{sup 6} W/m{sup 2} due to uncontrollable rise of the cantilever temperature ({delta}T{approx}20 deg. C) during CFP response time.
- OSTI ID:
- 21024682
- Journal Information:
- Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 78, Issue 12; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.2813897; (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0034-6748
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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