Electrostatic Systems Keep Dust Off Surfaces

Electrostatic dust- collection systems that comprise wire grids connected to lightweight, low-power high-voltage sources have been invented for preventing the accumulation of dust on surfaces. Intended originally for use in keeping spacecraft solar panels free of dust, these systems could also be used on Earth to keep dust off such critical surfaces as those of semiconductor surfaces that await processing, highly sensitive optical instruments, and optoelectronic devices.