The small-deflection energy analyzer (SDEA): Enabling multi-point investigations in the thermosphere–ionosphere.
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- Herrero, Federico; Nicholas, Andrew; Finne, Ted; Jones, Hollis; Aalami, Dean
- Source
- Review of Scientific Instruments. Sep2020, Vol. 91 Issue 9, p1-15. 15p.
- Subject
- *THERMOSPHERE
*OPERATING rooms
*DATA distribution
*SPECTROMETERS
- Language
- ISSN
- 0034-6748
The Small-Deflection Energy Analyzer (SDEA), a new type of parallel plate analyzer of high sensitivity and resolution, enables CubeSat applications for new ionosphere–thermosphere investigations. SDEA's data of angle-energy distributions yield the thermosphere–ionosphere parameters of neutral wind and ion-drift vectors with corresponding temperatures and densities. Less than 4 cm in total length and 2 cm on the side, SDEA is used in the wind-temperature and ion-drift temperature spectrometers pair to provide two of the three instrument functions in the Wind-Ion-Neutral-Composition Suite now operating in three satellites in a low-Earth orbit. The small-deflection feature of SDEA allows miniaturization with several advantages discussed within. A description of SDEA is followed by examples of laboratory and a limited amount of flight data taken in low-Earth-orbit to demonstrate precision possible with SDEA. Strengths and weaknesses are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]