  We have developed a new detector of photons and charged particles- a
hole-type structure with electrodes made of a double layered resistive
material: a thin low resistive layer coated with a layer having a much higher
resistivity. One of the unique features of this detector is its capability to
operate at high gas gains (up to 10E4) in air or in gas mixtures with air. They
can also operate in a cascaded mode or be combined with other detectors, for
example with GEM. This opens new avenues in their applications. Several
prototypes of these devices based on new detectors and oriented on practical
applications were developed and successfully tested: a detector of soft X-rays
and alpha particles, a flame sensor, a detector of dangerous gases. All of
these detectors could operate stably even in humid air and/or in dusty
conditions. The main advantages of these detectors are their simplicity, low
cost and high sensitivity. For example, due to the avalanche multiplication,
the detectors of flames and dangerous gases have a sensitivity of 10-100 times
higher than commercial devices. We therefore believe that new detectors will
have a great future.
