Dust detector using piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate with current-to-voltage converting amplifier for functional advancement

This paper describes the concept of a dust monitor using lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics with a large detection area. Its potential as a dust detector is experimentally demonstrated. The dust monitor has a small volume compared to an impact ionization detector with the same detection area, due to the PZT sensor. The PZT sensor, as a traditional device for the in-situ observation of hypervelocity dust particles, has been used for momentum measurement. The hypervelocity impact signals of PZT sensors are typically read by charge-sensitive amplifiers. Instead, we suggest a new method that a current-to-voltage converting amplifier is useful for interpreting the impact signal of a PZT sensor arising from dust particles down to 0.5 μm in radius. We propose that datasets of dust impacts can be obtained with a higher statistical accuracy, if the new method is applied to instruments on forthcoming interplanetary-space-cruising spacecrafts.