In this paper, the characteristics of the primary arc and secondary arc on a solar array in low earth orbit（LEO） are investigated. The vacuum plasma environment in LEO has been used to study the primary arc and seco...In this paper, the characteristics of the primary arc and secondary arc on a solar array in low earth orbit（LEO） are investigated. The vacuum plasma environment in LEO has been used to study the primary arc and secondary arc of a high-voltage solar array. Silicon solar cells with rigid substrate specimens are used for the experiment. The series-parallel spacing of the silicon solar cells is 1 mm. The string currents of the solar cells are 0.7 A, 1.5 A and 2 A. The primary arc and secondary arc are photographed by high-speed cameras. The differences between the primary arc and secondary arc are observed. The secondary arc can be observed before the primary arc is extinguished. The primary arc is a single arc when the string current is 0.7 A. Multiple arc columns are accompanied by higher arc current. Two arc columns of the primary arc can be observed at 1.5 A string current and 2 A string current. The multiple primary arc columns are related to higher bias voltage. The threshold for sustained arcing is near 145 V/0.7 A, 105 V/1.5 A and 100 V/2 A at 1 mm string gap. Moreover, the transition time of secondary arc formation is analyzed, and found to be about 10–13 μs. The string currents, string voltages and primary arc have no effect on the transition time of the secondary arc formation.展开更多
It has been reported that sustained arc discharge induced by electrostatic discharge (ESD) could cause permanent damage to high-power and high-voltage solar array of spacecrafts. The paper focuses on ESD simulating ex...It has been reported that sustained arc discharge induced by electrostatic discharge (ESD) could cause permanent damage to high-power and high-voltage solar array of spacecrafts. The paper focuses on ESD simulating experiments on Si and GaAs samples, and induces sustained arc discharge. The physical mechanism of sustained arc discharge is discussed by comparing the charging/discharging phenomena between Si and GaAs samples. The experiments show that sustained arc discharge can produce a permanent short-circuit channel between solar cell strings through which the solar array’s photovoltaic power may flow out sustainedly. The analyses show that sustained arc discharge strongly depends on solar array structure, solar array operating voltage, ESD characteristics and cell materials. Keywords high-voltage solar array - electrostatic discharge - sustained arc discharge - mechanism Supported by the National Laboratory of Vacuum, Cryogenics Technology and Physics (Grant No. 51475030504DZ2801), and the National High Technology Development Program of China (Grant No. 2002AA732158)展开更多
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51407008)
文摘In this paper, the characteristics of the primary arc and secondary arc on a solar array in low earth orbit（LEO） are investigated. The vacuum plasma environment in LEO has been used to study the primary arc and secondary arc of a high-voltage solar array. Silicon solar cells with rigid substrate specimens are used for the experiment. The series-parallel spacing of the silicon solar cells is 1 mm. The string currents of the solar cells are 0.7 A, 1.5 A and 2 A. The primary arc and secondary arc are photographed by high-speed cameras. The differences between the primary arc and secondary arc are observed. The secondary arc can be observed before the primary arc is extinguished. The primary arc is a single arc when the string current is 0.7 A. Multiple arc columns are accompanied by higher arc current. Two arc columns of the primary arc can be observed at 1.5 A string current and 2 A string current. The multiple primary arc columns are related to higher bias voltage. The threshold for sustained arcing is near 145 V/0.7 A, 105 V/1.5 A and 100 V/2 A at 1 mm string gap. Moreover, the transition time of secondary arc formation is analyzed, and found to be about 10–13 μs. The string currents, string voltages and primary arc have no effect on the transition time of the secondary arc formation.
基金Supported by the National Laboratory of Vacuum, Cryogenics Technology and Physics (Grant No. 51475030504DZ2801)the National High Technology Development Program of China (Grant No. 2002AA732158)
文摘It has been reported that sustained arc discharge induced by electrostatic discharge (ESD) could cause permanent damage to high-power and high-voltage solar array of spacecrafts. The paper focuses on ESD simulating experiments on Si and GaAs samples, and induces sustained arc discharge. The physical mechanism of sustained arc discharge is discussed by comparing the charging/discharging phenomena between Si and GaAs samples. The experiments show that sustained arc discharge can produce a permanent short-circuit channel between solar cell strings through which the solar array’s photovoltaic power may flow out sustainedly. The analyses show that sustained arc discharge strongly depends on solar array structure, solar array operating voltage, ESD characteristics and cell materials. Keywords high-voltage solar array - electrostatic discharge - sustained arc discharge - mechanism Supported by the National Laboratory of Vacuum, Cryogenics Technology and Physics (Grant No. 51475030504DZ2801), and the National High Technology Development Program of China (Grant No. 2002AA732158)
