New sensor for measuring electric field strength

TU Wien has developed a sensor for measuring the strength of electric fields, which is much smaller, simpler and less prone to distortion than comparable devices. Accurately measuring electric fields is important in a variety of applications, such as weather forecasting, process control on industrial machinery, or ensuring the safety of people working on high-voltage power lines. Yet from a technological perspective, this is no easy task. In a break from the design principle that has been followed by all other measuring devices to date, a research team at TU Wien has now developed a silicon-based sensor as a microelectromechanical system (MEMS). Devised in conjunction with the Department for Integrated Sensor Systems at Danube University Krems, this sensor has the major advantage that it does not distort the very electric field it is currently measuring. An introduction to the new sensor has also been published in the electronics journal "Nature Electronics". Distorting measuring devices - "The equipment currently used to measure electric field strength has some significant downsides," explains Andreas Kainz from the Institute of Sensor and Actuator Systems (Faculty of Electrical Engineering, TU Wien).