Low Cost Optical Moisture Sensor for Weather Balloons

Not Available The objective of this program is to develop an all polymer material with a surface resistance less than 10 6 ohm/square, and having optical, mechanical, chemical, and thermal properties suitable for use in aircraft transparencies. These transparencies are typically acrylic and polycarbonate laminates to which various optical conductive coatings are applied. To reach the goals of optical transparency, conductivity and environmental stability, we propose, in collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University, to develop novel conductive polymer coatings. These polymers have an amphiphilic structure permitting them to form highly ordered monolayers and multilayers through specific surface interactions. The increased order gives rise to similar increases in conductivity, which translates to thinner, less absorbing films being required to effect ESD. Phase I will have the goal of synthesizing candidate polymers, developing uniform coating protocols for acrylic and polycarbonate, and evaluating the optical, electrical and stability properties of the resulting layers. A Phase I goal is an environmentally robust coating having a luminous transmittance of >75% and a sheet resistivity of <10 6 ohms per square.