Electric Field Sensor for Electromagnetic Pulse Measurement

A high-power electromagnetic (HPEM) pulse blast of few kV/m with a sharp rise-time in the order of nanoseconds and even picoseconds levels may be generated in many ways using a flux compression generator (FCG) or wideband pulse generator that may operate on varying frequencies from 1 to 100 GHz and their accurate detection is a necessity for efficient research and development of the HPEM systems. A simple dipole antenna may not be used for this purpose due to their extreme deficiency in capturing the abrupt rise-time. In spite of that, there is a need for an array of the sensor for measurement with the wideband HPEM system, which enhances overall measurement system cost. An electric field (or D-dot) sensor is the most suitable choice for accurate detection of such electromagnetic pulse owing to their sharp rise-time. In this paper, a new conceptual design of the ground-plane D-dot sensor, followed by the design philosophy is discussed. Two types of optimized prototypes of the wideband D-dot sensor with a different combination of matters has been designed using a thorough analytical investigation with FEM analysis and verification by VNA and 5 kVA pulse source. The developed D-dot sensor has a bandwidth range of, but not limited to 10.50 to 11.19 GHz, which minimize multi-sensor requirement with wideband EMP or HPEM systems development.