A full waveform current recorder for electrical prospecting

Current data are an important input data for electrical prospecting data postprocessing. The existing current recorder is inadequate for continuous recording, precision, bandwidth, dynamic range, and input range. A new full waveform current recorder that is ideal for measuring current signal for electrical prospecting applications is presented. The new measurement principle enables the fabrication of a high-precision current sensor with an autonomous data logger as well as continuous measurement capabilities for full waveforms that are comparable to recent developments for electrical prospecting applications. The full waveform current recorder is capable of measuring current with bandwidth from direct current (DC) to 10 kHz, with a power spectrum density noise floor of 10 mu A/rt(Hz) at 10 Hz. The current recorder has a dynamic range that is higher than 97 dB over a range of 100A at peak, with time synchronisation error as low as +/- 0.1 mu s. These features make new current recorder a promising technology for high-precision measurement with long-duration, autonomous data logging for field electrical prospecting applications.