Submit to Sensors Review for Sensors Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Physical Sensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2019) | Viewed by 63686

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Valentina Zhukova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Material Physics, Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal, 3, 20018 San Sebastian, Spain
Interests: magnetic sensors; amorphous and nanocrystalline ferromagnetic materials; magnetic microwires; giant magnetoimpedance; giant magnetoresistance; magnetoelastic effects
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Arcady Zhukov

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

1. Department of Polymers and Advanced Matererials, University Basque Country, UPV/EHU, 20018 San Sebastian, Spain
2. EHU Quantum Center, University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, Spain and IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48011 Bilbao, Spain
Interests: magnetic materials and applications; amorphous nano-crystalline and granular magnetic materials; hysteretic magnetic properties; magnetic wires; transport properties (giant magneto-impedance effect, magneto-resistance); magnetic sensors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Magnetic sensors and actuators have recently attracted great attention from academia and industry due to numerous exciting applications including the electronic surveillance, electrical engineering, medicine, informatics, magnetic recording, construction monitoring, automobile and aircraft industries, among others.

Within the last several years, numerous high-profile papers have been published by the community involved in the field related to development and design of novel high performance magnetic sensors and actuators.

Recent trends in magnetic sensorics are focused on miniaturization, the improvement of features and finding new operating principles based on fundamental studies of new materials and phenomena.

This Special Issue will focus on the last developments, latest research findings, ideas for highly sensitive magnetic devices and applications, magnetic sensing technology, on basic phenomena and fundamental aspects of magnetic materials suitable for magnetic sensors, actuators and applications as well as on wireless non-destructive control and monitoring, wearable electronics and medicine involving magnetic sensorics.

Both reviews and original research papers will be considered. Reviews should provide an up-to-date, well-balanced overview of the current state-of-the-art of a particular application and include the main results from other groups.

The topics of this Special Issue encompass, but are not restricted to, the following areas:

Magnetic sensors and actuators including, Hall-effect devices, magnetometers, magnetoimpedance sensors, magnetoresistance sensors, magnetoelastic sensors
Novel magnetic materials for sensor and actuator applications and their advanced processing
Fundamentals and physics involving basic effects, theory, modeling of magnetic sensors
Magnetic measurements and instrumentation, measurement standards
Smart materials and composites for wireless and non-destructive control including tunable metamaterials
Development of magnetic sensors applications including biomedicine, electronic surveillance, electrical engineering, informatics, magnetic recording, construction monitoring, automobile and aircraft industries among others applications

We look forward for your valuable contributions to this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Valentina Zhukova
Prof. Dr. Arcady Zhukov
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sensors is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Magnetic sensors
Magnetic actuators
Non-destructive control
Magnetic materials
Magnetometers
Fundamentals and physics of magnetic sensors
Magnetic measurements and instrumentation
Measurement standards
Smart materials and composites
Non-destructive control
Tunable metamaterials
Magnetic sensor applications

Published Papers (12 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

Jump to: Review

13 pages, 2896 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Development of ASIC Type GSR Sensor Driven by GHz Pulse Current

by Yoshinobu Honkura and Shinpei Honkura

Sensors 2020, 20(4), 1023; https://doi.org/10.3390/s20041023 - 14 Feb 2020

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 4215

Abstract

The GigaHertz spin rotation (GSR) effect was observed through the excitement of Giga Hertz (GHz) pulse current flowing through amorphous wire. The GSR sensor that was developed provides excellent features that enhanced magnetic sensitivity and sine functional relationship, as well as good linearity, absence of hysteresis, and low noise. Considering the GHz frequency range used for the GSR sensor, we assume that the physical phenomena associated with the operation of the sensor are based on spin reduction and rotation of the magnetization. The proper production technology needed was developed and a micro-sized GSR sensor was produced by directly forming micro coils on the surface of the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Some prototypes of the ASIC type GSR sensor have been produced in consideration of applications such as automotive use, mobile device use, and medical use. Therefore, we can conclude that GSR sensors have great potential to become promising magnetic sensors for many applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 8402 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Rectangular Array Electric Current Transducer with Integrated Fluxgate Sensors

by Pavel Ripka, Pavel Mlejnek, Pavel Hejda, Andrey Chirtsov and Jan Vyhnánek

Sensors 2019, 19(22), 4964; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19224964 - 14 Nov 2019

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3252

Abstract

Novel rectangular yokeless current transducer with the range 400 A using 16 microfluxgate sensors around the busbar conductor is presented in this paper. Compared to yokeless transducers utilizing the differential pair of magnetic sensors, our solution has much better suppression of the external currents (lower crosstalk). Compared to industrial transducers with yoke, the new transducer has 15-times lower noise, 7-times better temperature stability, and same crosstalk. Sensor design and design of current monitoring system is presented together with the results of long-term field tests. Crosstalk error is examined in dependence on the number of the operating sensors and external current position. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 4884 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development of Magnetic Microwires for Magnetic Sensor Applications

by Valentina Zhukova, Paula Corte-Leon, Mihail Ipatov, Juan Maria Blanco, Lorena Gonzalez-Legarreta and Arcady Zhukov

Sensors 2019, 19(21), 4767; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19214767 - 02 Nov 2019

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 4021

Abstract

Thin magnetic wires can present excellent soft magnetic properties (with coercivities up to 4 A/m), Giant Magneto-impedance effect, GMI, or rectangular hysteresis loops combined with quite fast domain wall, DW, propagation. In this paper we overview the magnetic properties of thin magnetic wires and post-processing allowing optimization of their magnetic properties for magnetic sensor applications. We concluded that the GMI effect, magnetic softness or DW dynamics of microwires can be tailored by controlling the magnetoelastic anisotropy of as-prepared microwires or controlling their internal stresses and domain structure by appropriate thermal treatment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

14 pages, 5874 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Microwire-Based Sensor Array for Measuring Wheel Loads of Vehicles

by Jesus Olivera, Sofia Aparicio, Margarita Gonzalez Hernández, Arcady Zhukov, Rastislav Varga, Maximo Campusano, Enmanuel Echavarria and Jose Javier Anaya Velayos

Sensors 2019, 19(21), 4658; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19214658 - 26 Oct 2019

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3579

Abstract

In this paper, a magnetic microwire-based sensor array embedded under the pavement is proposed as a weighing system at customs ports of entry. This sensor is made of a cementitious material suitable for embedding within the core of concrete structures prior to curing. The objective of this research is to verify the feasibility of stress monitoring for concrete materials using an array of cement-based stress/strain sensors that have been developed using the magnetic sensing property of an embedded microwire in a cement-based composite. Test results for microwire-based sensors and gauge sensors are compared. The strain sensitivity and their linearity are investigated through experimental testing under compressive loadings. Sensors made of these materials can be designed to satisfy specific needs and reduce costs in the production of sensor aggregates with improved coupling performance, thus avoiding any disturbance to the stress state. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 2170 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Magnetic Sensing Properties of PVD Carbon Films Containing Vertically Aligned Crystallites

by Xingze Dai, Jing Guo, Tongbin Huang, Dong Ding and Chao Wang

Sensors 2019, 19(19), 4248; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19194248 - 30 Sep 2019

Viewed by 2503

Abstract

The demands for magnetic sensors are uprising due to the rapid development of smart equipments and internet of things. Exploring magnetic sensitive materials which are easily obtainable and of low cost thereby become of great significance. Carbon film with crystallized features was recently reported with room-temperature ferro-magnetism and magnetoresistance, owing to its spin–orbital interactions at the graphene edges and temperature-depending carrier transport properties. Such phenomena indicate that the film can serve as a novel magnetic sensitive material. In this study, carbon films with vertically aligned nano-crystallites were obtained by a plasma-assisted physical vapor deposition (PVD) method. Basic test circuits were built on the films, and the sensing properties were investigated in external magnetic fields with different intensities and relative angles to the films surface. The results showed that the carbon-based sensing devices were capable to work in the temperature region of 250–400 K. The minimum field intensity and angle change to which the device can respond were 1 mT and 2°. By substrate-introduced enhancement, the maximum changing-rate of the film resistance could reach to 1100%/T. This research pointed out a practical and simple way to build magnetic sensors with PVD carbon films. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

6 pages, 2806 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Low-Frequency Noise of Magnetic Sensors Based on the Anomalous Hall Effect in Fe–Pt Alloys

by Yiou Zhang, Qiang Hao and Gang Xiao

Sensors 2019, 19(16), 3537; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19163537 - 13 Aug 2019

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4604

Abstract

We took advantage of the large anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in Fe–Pt ferromagnetic alloys and fabricated magnetic sensors for low-frequency applications. We characterized the low-frequency electronic noise and the field detectability of the Fe_xPt_100-x system with various thin film thicknesses and Fe concentrations. The noise source consisted of 1/f and Johnson noise. A large current density increased the 1/f noise but not the Johnson noise. We found that the field detectability of the optimized Fe–Pt thin film offers much better low-frequency performance than a highly sensitive commercial semiconductor Hall sensor. Anomalous Hall effect sensors are, therefore, good candidates for magnetic sensing applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 388 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Magnetic Communication Using High-Sensitivity Magnetic Field Detectors

by Maurice Hott, Peter A. Hoeher and Sebastian F. Reinecke

Sensors 2019, 19(15), 3415; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19153415 - 04 Aug 2019

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 5704

Abstract

In this article, an innovative approach for magnetic data communication is presented. For this purpose, the receiver coil of a conventional magneto-inductive communication system is replaced by a high-sensitivity wideband magnetic field sensor. The results show decisive advantages offered by sensitive magnetic field sensors, including a higher communication range for small receiver units. This approach supports numerous mobile applications where receiver size is limited, possibly in conjunction with multiple detectors. Numerical results are supported by a prototype implementation employing an anisotropic magneto-resistive sensor. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 8585 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modeling and Analyzing the Mutual Inductance of Rogowski Coils of Arbitrary Skeleton

by Xiaoyu Liu, Hui Huang and Chaoqun Jiao

Sensors 2019, 19(15), 3397; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19153397 - 02 Aug 2019

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3637

Abstract

There are Rogowski coils of various shapes in the on-site measurement, and it is difficult to calculate the electrical quantities of Rogowski coils of curved skeleton and circular cross-section by simulation software. This paper proposes a theoretical derivation to calculate the mutual inductance between the conductors of any shape and Rogowski coils with skeletons of any shape. Based on the derivation, the influence of four skeleton shapes of Rogowski coils and four shapes of the primary conductors on the mutual inductance of Rogowski coils are studied by the comparison between the ideal cases and some non-ideal ones. The gap and gap compensation of the openable Rogowski coils are also considered. Experiments verify the numerical results according to the derivation. It is shown that to reduce the errors of the measurement the circular skeleton deformation should be avoided, the coil’s skeleton should be with curved angle, the primary conductor should be as straight as possible and should go through the center of the skeletons vertically. Furthermore, for the Rogowski coils of the rectangular skeleton, we propose a new skeleton structure to reduce the deviation influence of the primary conductors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 2985 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Aeromagnetic Compensation Method Based on a Multimodel for Mitigating Multicollinearity

by Guanyi Zhao, Qi Han, Xiang Peng, Pengyi Zou, Haidong Wang, Changping Du, He Wang, Xiaojun Tong, Qiong Li and Hong Guo

Sensors 2019, 19(13), 2931; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19132931 - 03 Jul 2019

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3899

Abstract

Aeromagnetic surveys play an important role in geophysical exploration and many other fields. In many applications, magnetometers are installed aboard an aircraft to survey large areas. Due to its composition, an aircraft has its own magnetic field, which degrades the reliability of the measurements, and thus a technique (named aeromagnetic compensation) that reduces the magnetic interference field effect is required. Commonly, based on the Tolles–Lawson model, this issue is solved as a linear regression problem. However, multicollinearity, which refers to the case when more than two model variables are highly linearly related, creates accuracy problems when estimating the model coefficients. The analysis in this study indicates that the variables that cause multicollinearity are related to the flight heading. To take this point into account, a multimodel compensation method is proposed. By selecting the variables that contribute less to the multicollinearity, different sub-models are built to describe the magnetic interference of the aircraft when flying in different orientations. This method restricts the impact of multicollinearity and improves the reliability of the measurements. Compared with the existing methods, the proposed method reduces the interference field more effectively, which is verified by a set of airborne tests. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 4863 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Characterizing Complex Mineral Structures in Thin Sections of Geological Samples with a Scanning Hall Effect Microscope

by Jefferson F. D. F. Araujo, Andre L. A. Reis, Vanderlei C. Oliveira, Jr., Amanda F. Santos, Cleanio Luz-Lima, Elder Yokoyama, Leonardo A. F. Mendoza, João M. B. Pereira and Antonio C. Bruno

Sensors 2019, 19(7), 1636; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19071636 - 05 Apr 2019

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5242

Abstract

We improved a magnetic scanning microscope for measuring the magnetic properties of minerals in thin sections of geological samples at submillimeter scales. The microscope is comprised of a 200 µm diameter Hall sensor that is located at a distance of 142 µm from the sample; an electromagnet capable of applying up to 500 mT DC magnetic fields to the sample over a 40 mm diameter region; a second Hall sensor arranged in a gradiometric configuration to cancel the background signal applied by the electromagnet and reduce the overall noise in the system; a custom-designed electronics system to bias the sensors and allow adjustments to the background signal cancelation; and a scanning XY stage with micrometer resolution. Our system achieves a spatial resolution of 200 µm with a noise at 6.0 Hz of 300 nT_rms/(Hz)^1/2 in an unshielded environment. The magnetic moment sensitivity is 1.3 × 10⁻¹¹ Am². We successfully measured the representative magnetization of a geological sample using an alternative model that takes the sample geometry into account and identified different micrometric characteristics in the sample slice. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Review

Jump to: Research

32 pages, 5263 KiB

Open AccessReview

Ultrasensitive Magnetic Field Sensors for Biomedical Applications

by Dmitry Murzin, Desmond J. Mapps, Kateryna Levada, Victor Belyaev, Alexander Omelyanchik, Larissa Panina and Valeria Rodionova

Sensors 2020, 20(6), 1569; https://doi.org/10.3390/s20061569 - 11 Mar 2020

Cited by 121 | Viewed by 18045

Abstract

The development of magnetic field sensors for biomedical applications primarily focuses on equivalent magnetic noise reduction or overall design improvement in order to make them smaller and cheaper while keeping the required values of a limit of detection. One of the cutting-edge topics today is the use of magnetic field sensors for applications such as magnetocardiography, magnetotomography, magnetomyography, magnetoneurography, or their application in point-of-care devices. This introductory review focuses on modern magnetic field sensors suitable for biomedicine applications from a physical point of view and provides an overview of recent studies in this field. Types of magnetic field sensors include direct current superconducting quantum interference devices, search coil, fluxgate, magnetoelectric, giant magneto-impedance, anisotropic/giant/tunneling magnetoresistance, optically pumped, cavity optomechanical, Hall effect, magnetoelastic, spin wave interferometry, and those based on the behavior of nitrogen-vacancy centers in the atomic lattice of diamond. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

24 pages, 16011 KiB

Open AccessReview

Soft Magnetic Amorphous Microwires for Stress and Temperature Sensory Applications

by Larissa Panina, Abdukarim Dzhumazoda, Makhsudsho Nematov, Junaid Alam, Alex Trukhanov, Nikolay Yudanov, Alexander Morchenko, Valeria Rodionova and Arcady Zhukov

Sensors 2019, 19(23), 5089; https://doi.org/10.3390/s19235089 - 21 Nov 2019

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3677

Abstract

Amorphous ferromagnetic materials in the form of microwires are of interest for the development of various sensors. This paper analyzes and argues for the use of microwires of two basic compositions of Co₇₁Fe₅B₁₁Si₁₀Cr₃ and Fe_3.9(4.9)Co_64.82B_10.2Si₁₂Cr₉₍₈₎Mo_0.08 as stress/strain and temperature sensors, respectively. The following properties make them suitable for innovative applications: miniature dimensions, small coercivity, low anisotropy and magnetostriction, tunable magnetic structure, magnetic anisotropy, and Curie temperature by annealing. For example, these sensors can be used for testing the internal stress/strain condition of polymer composite materials and controlling the temperature of hypothermia treatments. The sensing operation is based on the two fundamental effects: the generation of higher frequency harmonics of the voltage pulse induced during remagnetization in wires demonstrating magnetic bistability, and magnetoimpedance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Magnetic Sensing Technology, Materials and Applications)

► Show Figures