Dynamic Characterization of a Magnetoelectric Cantilever for Actuation and Sensing Available to Purchase

This article continues our work to develop magnetoelectric materials as self-sensing actuators. Our research is directed at developing a two-segment cantilever device with closed-loop control. The actuator under study is fabricated as a laminated composite of the magnetostrictive material Iron-Gallium (Galfenol) and a Lead-Zirconate-Titanate piezoelectric material (PZT-5H). The mechanical and electrical characteristics of a single-segment cantilever are modeled using the equation of motion developed from variational principles in earlier work and are compared with experimental data from other groups. Additionally, parametric analysis is performed to determine the effect of varying the thickness fraction of the piezoelectric layer on the frequency response characteristics of the actuator. When applied to the dynamic behavior of the actuator, the model predicts behavior that closely resembles experimental results published by other groups. Parametric analysis of the piezoelectric layer thickness fraction indicates that the design of a magnetoelectric cantilever self-sensing actuator can be optimized by varying the thickness fraction.