MICROSCOPE instrument description and validation
Abstract
Dedicated accelerometers have been developed for the MICROSCOPE mission taking into account the specific range of acceleration to be measured on board the satellite. Considering one micro-g and even less as the full range of the instrument, leads to a customized concept and a high performance electronics for the sensing and servo-actuations of the accelerometer test-masses. In addition to a very accurate geometrical sensor core, a high performance electronics architecture provides the measurement of the weak electrostatic forces and torques applied to the test-masses. A set of capacitive sensors delivers the position and the attitude of the test-mass with respect to a very steady gold coated cage made in silica. The voltages applied on the electrodes surrounding each test-mass are finely controlled to generate the adequate electrical field and so the electrostatic pressures on the test-mass. This field maintains the test-mass motionless with respect to the instrument structure. Digital control laws are implemented in order to enable instrument operation flexibility and a weak position sensor noise. These electronics provide both the scientific data for MICROSCOPE's test of General Relativity and the data for the satellite drag-free and attitude control system (DFACS).
Cite
@article{arxiv.2012.11232,
title = {MICROSCOPE instrument description and validation},
author = {Françoise Liorzou and Pierre Touboul and Manuel Rodrigues and Gilles Métris and Yves André and Joel Bergé and Damien Boulanger and Stefanie Bremer and Ratana Chhun and Bruno Christophe and Pascale Danto and Bernard Foulon and Daniel Hagedorn and Emilie Hardy and Phuong-Anh Huynh and Claus Lämmerzahl and Vincent Lebat and Meike List and Frank Löffler and Benny Rievers and Alain Robert and Hanns Selig},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2012.11232},
year = {2020}
}
Comments
To be submitted to CQG's MICROSCOPE special issue