Micro Electric-field Sensors: Principles and Applications

The measurement of an electric field is of great significance for applications such as online monitoring and fault diagnosis in the ubiquitous power Internet of Things (UPIoT), meteorological monitoring, the petrochemical industry, and space launches. Traditional electric field measurement methods, such as field mills, are bulky, cause electric field distortion, and have a strong temperature dependence. Micro electric field sensors (E-sensors) can effectively reduce the distortion of electric fields. Meanwhile, the low cost and small size allow micro E-sensors to be installed inside equipment, and they are suitable for large-scale sensor array applications. This article introduces E-sensors based on different principles, including the electro-optic effect, induced charge, the inverse piezoelectric effect, and so on. The applications of micro E-sensors and the challenges faced by electric field measurement are also introduced. © 2007-2011 IEEE.