Measurement of Surface and Volume Resistivity for Silver Coated FEP Used for Spacecraft

Abstract

This paper reports on surface and volume resistivity of thermal control materials used for spacecraft measured in atmospheric and vacuum conditions. The investigated materials included silver coated FEP samples with or without holes and with or without an adhesive layer. The volume and surface resistivity in vacuum were about 1016 Ωm and 1017–1018 Ω, respectively, for the FEP samples with holes and an adhesive layer. The values of volume and surface resistivity were almost the same for the FEP sheet without the holes and the adhesive layer. From the electrical point of view, the resistivity of the FEP sheet with holes and an adhesive layer, under vacuum conditions, is equivalent to that without holes and the adhesive.