Faraday cup
Schematic diagram of a Faraday cup | |
| Uses | Charged particle detector |
|---|---|
| Related items | Electron multiplier Microchannel plate detector Daly detector |
A Faraday cup is a metal (conductive) cup designed to catch charged particles. The resulting current can be measured and used to determine the number of ions or electrons hitting the cup. The Faraday cup was named after Michael Faraday who first theorized ions around 1830.
Examples of devices which use Faraday cups include space probes (Voyager 1, & 2, Parker Solar Probe, etc.) and mass spectrometers. Faraday cups can also be used to measure charged aerosol particles.