Material Selection Analysis of New Partial Discharge Sensor Electrode Plate Based on First-Principles Study

Graphene is well known for its electrical properties and can be used for sensor improvement. The first-principles study is one of the powerful tools to analyze and predict the performance of advanced materials. In this paper, microscopic material selection is performed for partial discharge sensor electrode plate materials based on first-principles study. By introducing graphene, six different microscopic electrode plate models are built based on the traditional metal electrode plates. Electrical properties including electronic structure, charge density and charge distribution of electrode plates are analyzed from the microscopic perspective when the actual partial discharge electric field is 1 V/m. Additionally, electrical transport properties of electrode plates are determined by electrical transport calculation. The results show that the double-layer graphene copper-clad electrode plate has better electrical transport capacity and higher gain characteristics when used in partial discharge sensors. This study fills the gap in the microscopic electric transport response mechanism of electrode plates, which can provide theoretical support for the improved design of partial discharge sensors.