DURABLE FINE WIRE ELECTRICAL CONDUCTOR SUITABLE FOR EXTREME ENVIRONMENT APPLICATIONS

摘要

Durable fine wire electrical conductors are robust, durable, small in profile, and light weight, yet capable of operating under extreme environmental conditions. Formed of a glass, silica, sapphire or crystalline quartz fiber core with a metal coating and one or more polymer layers, a unipolar electrical conductor can have an outer diameter as small as about 300 microns or even smaller. The metal buffer coating may be deposited directly on the glass/silica fiber, or upon an intermediate layer between the glass/silica fiber and metal, consisting of carbon and/or polymer. The resulting metallized glass/silica fibers are extremely durable, can be bent through small radii and will not fatigue even from millions of iterations of flexing. Bipolar electrical conductors can include several insulated metallized glass/silica fibers residing side by side, or can be coaxial with two or more insulated metal conductive paths. An outer protective sheath of a flexible polymer material can be included.

主权项

1. An apparatus comprising:
an electro-mechanical device configured and arranged to exhibit or experience movement; and a fine wire conductor including
a drawn glass or silica fiber core;a first inner layer comprised of a polymer configured and arranged to provide a seal on the drawn glass or silica fiber core;a conductive metal buffer cladding on the polymer layer; and the fine wire conductor having an outer diameter at the conductive metal buffer cladding no greater than approximately 750 microns and being configured and arranged to provide an electrical pathway to the electro-mechanical device so as to carry an electrical current and to be sufficiently flexible for accommodating the movement.