Studies of the Individual and Combined Effects of VUV Radiation and Hyperthermal O or Ar Atoms on FEP Teflon(R) and PMMA Surfaces

Atomic oxygen and molecular nitrogen are the major constituents in the residual atmosphere at low Earth orbital altitudes, and they collide with spacecraft surfaces at relative velocities of -7.8 km The energy associated with these hyperthermal collisions is in excess of many bond dissociation energies and may help promote materials degradation by allowing barriers to reaction or to collision-induced dissociation (CID) to be overcome.