New Electrometer of High Sensitivity

A highly sensitive electrometer has been developed for the detection of small dc signals. The signal to be measured is impressed upon a movable quartz fiber, causing it to oscillate in an ac field. A controlled bucking voltage is applied to bring the fiber to rest as it is viewed through a microscop...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Review of scientific instruments 1964-08, Vol.35 (8), p.1046-1049
Main Authors: Shonka, Francis R., Failla, G., Rose, John E.
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:A highly sensitive electrometer has been developed for the detection of small dc signals. The signal to be measured is impressed upon a movable quartz fiber, causing it to oscillate in an ac field. A controlled bucking voltage is applied to bring the fiber to rest as it is viewed through a microscope. Sensitivities in excess of 10 000 div/V or 1016 div/C are readily attainable. The electrometer is small, rugged, stable, and portable. It has low inherent capacity, negligible geotropism, wide voltage range, and the ability to measure its own contact potential. Because it has an extremely nonlinear response (maximum sensitivity at zero signal), the fiber remains in the field of view and is neither damaged nor paralyzed by large input signals. A unique feature is that all adjustments of the ac voltages (producing the ac field) can be made during precision measurements of dc signals.
ISSN:0034-6748
1089-7623
DOI:10.1063/1.1718920