An Optically Interrogated, Microfabricated Pillar Array for Wall Shear Stress Sensing
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abstract
A microfabricated optically-interrogated wall shear stress sensor has been developed which allows for quantitative measurement of the shear stress distribution present on aerodynamic surfaces. The sensor employs a close-packed array of elastomeric cylindrical pillars having a aspect ratio of 4 to 1 and a typical diameters from 20-60 m. The pillar array is partially reflective, and the application of a shear stress results in a change in the reflectivity of the surface of the array which provides a direct measurement of local shear stress distribution. The operation of the sensor has been experimentally verified in both subsonic and supersonic flow regimes. The experimental set-up used to validate its performance is described and a computational model used to provide a quantitative estimate of shear stress as a function of the experimentally determined sensor response is presented. Copyright 2012 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc.
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50th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting including the New Horizons Forum and Aerospace Exposition