Strain sensing by exploiting the Matteucci effect in amorphous wire

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Alimohammadi, Sahar^a | Meydan, Turgut^a; | Williams, Paul^a

Affiliations: [a] Wolfson Centre for Magnetics, School of Engineering, Cardiff University, UK

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Turgut Meydan, Wolfson Centre for Magnetics, School of Engineering, Cardiff University, UK. E-mail: meydan@cardiff.ac.uk

Abstract: Previous investigations of the Matteucci effect in amorphous microwires have yielded a basic understanding of the underlying physical mechanism. However, a complete quantitative model is still elusive particularly in explaining the role of magnetoelastic interactions. This is important because the Matteucci effect is an under-utilized phenomenon with promising potential for exploitation in stress sensing applications. In this work, we have studied the influence of tensile stress on the Matteucci effect in two types of amorphous wires (Fe77.5Si7.5B15 and Co68.15Fe4.35Si12.5B15). This paper shows how the axial stress significantly affects the Matteucci voltage and that this behaviour is dependent upon the sign of the magnetostriction constant. Measuring the Matteucci voltage as a function of stress in magnetostrictive wire produced an equivalent gauge factor over two orders of magnitude greater than that obtained in a conventional resistive strain gauge. This offers the potential for the development of a new type of wire-based strain sensor.

Keywords: Matteucci effect, strain sensor, amorphous wire

DOI: 10.3233/JAE-171225

Journal: International Journal of Applied Electromagnetics and Mechanics, vol. 59, no. 1, pp. 115-121, 2019