What this work contributes
Uses a concentric cylindrical capacitor to link electrical and length measurements to reference force. Weighing experiments illustrate how a small-force measurement can have a traceability chain instead of relying on nominal sensor resolution.
Where the evidence stops
The reported mass measurements were limited by artifact stability and changes in adsorbed surface layers during vacuum-to-air transfer. A new apparatus requires its own calibration and uncertainty budget.
Keep the conditions with the result
- Measured / modeled quantity
- Mass realized through an electrostatic reference force
- Reported scale
- 1 mg and 20 mg artifacts; numerical uncertainty not extracted.
- Conditions
- Electromechanical balance using a vacuum-gap capacitor; artifact transfer between vacuum and air.
- Evidence context
- Comparison with kilogram-subdivision methods reported; independent replication not assessed here.
- Design use
- Plan calibration transfer and surface-condition controls before choosing a force sensor.
- Review access
- Institutional abstract and bibliographic metadata inspected; full text not reviewed.
Original source
Gordon A. Shaw, Julian Stirling, John A. Kramar, Alexander D. Moses, Patrick J. Abbott, Richard L. Steiner, Andrew D. Koffman, Jon R. Pratt, Zeina J. Kubarych. Milligram mass metrology using an electrostatic force balance. Metrologia 53, A86 (2016).
DOI: 10.1088/0026-1394/53/5/A86
How we use it
This record belongs to Measurement & replication. Its evidence label describes the cited work, not the maturity of a Metric Flight device. Follow the original methods, corrections and conditions before transferring a result to a different geometry or scale.
Editorial note reviewed 19 October 2026. AI assisted research discovery and synthesis. Citation metadata and claims were checked against primary publication or institutional records; full-text access varies. Read the source for the complete method.