Improved Sensitivity and Noise in Magneto-Electric Magnetic Field Sensors by Use of Modulated AC Magnetostriction

• Published in: IEEE magnetics letters Vol. 2; p. 2500104
• Main Authors: Gillette, S M, Geiler, A L, Gray, D, Viehland, D, Vittoria, C, Harris, V G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Piscataway IEEE 2011; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Amorphous magnetic materials; Direct current; Lead zirconate titanates; Magnetic fields; Magnetic sensors; magneto-electric sensor; Magneto-electronics; Magnetoelectric effects; Magnetometers; Magnetostriction; Miniature; modulation technique; Noise; sensitivity enhancement; Sensors; Signal to noise ratio
• ISSN: 1949-307X; 1949-3088
• DOI: 10.1109/LMAG.2011.2151178

A magnetic field sensor based on the nonlinear nature of the magnetostrictive response of a magneto-electric (ME) heterostructure has two orders of magnitude improvement in sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio compared with a conventional dc-biased configuration. The sensor consists of a longitudinally magnetized and transversely poled lamination of iron-cobalt-boron (Metglas) and lead zirconate titanate (PZT). The ac-modulated sensor has enhanced environmental noise immunity and does not require a dc magnetic bias field. Combined, these advantages hold promise for the development of miniature ME sensor elements for applications with size and weight limitations.