Development of a nanoscale hot-wire probe for supersonic flow applications

Abstract: A new nanoscale thermal anemometry probe (NSTAP) was designed and fabricated to measure mass flux in supersonic flows. This sensor was evaluated in the Trisonic Wind Tunnel Munich (TWM) at both subsonic and supersonic speeds. Subsonic compressible flow tests were performed to confirm the new sensor’s repeatability and to compare its behaviour to measurements from a conventional cylindrical hot-wire, while supersonic tests were performed to investigate the nature of the convective heat transfer from the nanoscale sensor at those conditions. For the range of mass fluxes tested in the supersonic regime, a linear relationship between the Nusselt number and the Reynolds number fit the data well. A linear relationship has previously been noticed at length scales close to the molecular mean free path of the flow and has been attributed to the free-molecule flow regime, where the Knudsen number is on the order of unity. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].