Description:

Resonance Ltd. has developed systems to expose spacecraft materials to thermal atomic oxygen and VUV-UV light that simulates low earth orbit conditions. Oxygen atoms are produced upstream from the exposure chamber by radio frequency dissociation of O2. Atomic oxygen concentrations to 10^15 atoms/cm^3 can be generated with the high power RFX-500 generator. This is comparable to an atomic oxygen flux of roughly

2x10^16 cm^2/sec (equivalent 5 eV atomic flux measured with

Kapton dosimeter).

The oxygen density profile across the material sample can be measured in-situ with the Resonance Ltd. Atomic Oxygen Density Profiler using the technique of resonance absorption.

Resonance also provides light sources from 30 to > 1,000 nm that simulate the solar spectrum. The Atomic Oxygen Density Profiler and Solar Simulator Sources can be easily adapted to existing atomic oxygen exposure systems.

AO systems from Resonance have been used by Canadian Space

Agency, by Stanford University, University of Tokyo, Los Alamos

FEATURES:

Simulates Low Earth Orbit Erosion

Samples exposed to continuous stream of thermal Oxygen atoms

High Flux

Atomic oxygen fluxes up to 3 x 10^19 atoms/cm2/sec

Quick Turn Around

Measurable erosion of Kapton by weight loss in ? hour  Typical

sample exposure time is 2 hours

Solar Simulation

Calibrated Solar simulation using VUV UV ａnd Visible light

sources and detectors

No Interferents

Samples are downstream from active plasma and are not exposed to

uncontrolled ions, metastables or UV radiation as in plasma ashers

In-Situ Atomic Oxygen Density Profile

Atomic oxygen density profile is measured by resonance absorption

of VUV line

Thermal Controlled Sample Holder

Sample holder can be heated to increase erosion rate. Thermal- vacuum cycling of the sample is also available