Strain gages in cryogenic environment

The increasing use of cryogenics in all fields of endeavor necessitates the use of strain gages for stress analysis of structures under extreme temperatures. This has been a continuing program at the McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Co.'s Strain Gage Engineering Laboratory (Huntington Beach facility). Many characteristics of strain gages were investigated, and a majority of the commercial strain gage types were evaluated. Tests results are presented, as well as composite curves, showing the comparison between various types of strain gages.