Dimensionally gradient magnetoelectric bimorph structure exhibiting wide frequency and magnetic dc bias operating range

We report results on a dimensionally gradient magnetoelectric (ME) sensor that demonstrates high performance over a wide frequency range and a magnetic dc bias operating in the longitudinal-transversal mode. The design of the sensor is based on a piezoelectric bimorph structure and utilizes a laminate configuration with Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)(0.2)(Zr0.5Ti0.5)(0.8)O-3 and Metglas as material layers. The wide-band behavior was characterized by a flat ME response over a wide range of magnetic dc biases corresponding to 60-215 Oe and frequencies corresponding to 7-22 kHz. By using tip mass, the wide-band frequency response was shifted to a lower frequency range of 5-14 kHz. The results show that the operating frequency range of the sensor can be easily shifted by changing the tip mass at the end of the composite.