AIDA

The "Advanced Impact Detector Array" is a collaboration with the etamax GmbH in Braunschweig. The aim of the sides of the PTB successfully completed orbital project is to develop a sensor for the detection of "space junk" as the particulate residue from rocket fuel or collisions of satellites (or the destruction of these in the context of military tests). Particles a few micrometers in size but with a speed of 10 km / s can destroy the delicate system of satellites in Earth orbit and put people's massive. A precise knowledge of the distribution density of such bodies that can not be detected by ground-based radar stations, is therefore necessary.

The AIDA-sensor operates on the principle of energy conversion. An impacting particle moving is collected by an Au film, which in the course of the impact locally increases its temperature. Increasing the temperature of an anti-serially connected thermopile array converted to an electrical voltage, which is evaluated by a specially developed electronics for these sensors.

It was the object of scientific instrument making a production technology for manufacturing high-precision, according to a predetermined pattern to develop shared Cu and Au films (Fig.) and the films to produce reproducible. This task was fulfilled to the fullest satisfaction of project partners and within the planned time frame. The gain on this externally-funded project for the Scientific Instrumentation and the PTB is that the procedure can be offered today as a production standard.

PTB article: "With the AIDA against all the garbage problem"