The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 25, 2014
Filed:
Oct. 09, 2009
Gary A. Hallock, Austin, TX (US);
Mark A. Meier, Houston, TX (US);
Gary A. Hallock, Austin, TX (US);
Mark A. Meier, Houston, TX (US);
ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company, Houston, TX (US);
Abstract
Devices for sensing gradients are constructed from material whose properties change in response to gradients. One embodiment of the device is a transducer () for sensing gradients that includes the material () and two or more electrodes () coupled to the material. In one embodiment, gradients in a surrounding medium () modify the energy gap of the material in the transducer () producing a diffusion current density (). The material is configured to connect to a current or voltage measurement device () where a measurement is used to determine the gradient in the medium (). The devices can be used to measure pressure, temperature, and/or other properties. The transducer can be built on the same substrate as complementary circuitry. A transducer made of Indium. Antimonide is used in marine seismology to measure pressure gradients.