High magnetoelectric tuning effect in a polymer-based magnetostrictive-piezoelectric laminate under resonance drive

Abstract

A polymer-based magnetoelectric (ME) laminate was fabricated by sandwiching one layer of thickness-polarized, length-stretched polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) piezoelectric polymer between two layers of length-magnetized, epoxy-bonded Tb₀.₃Dy₀.₇Fe₁.₉₂ (Terfenol-D) pseudo-1–3 magnetostrictive particulate composite in the thickness direction, and its resonance ME effect was investigated, both experimentally and theoretically, as a function of magnetic bias field (H[sub Bias]). The laminate showed a high ME voltage coefficient (α[sub V]) of 233 mV/Oe at the fundamental resonance frequency (f[sub r]) of 60.6 kHz under a relatively low H[sub Bias] of 0.6 kOe. By controlling H[sub Bias] in the range of 0.02–1.5 kOe, nonlinear tunabilities as high as 1382 and 8.6% were achieved for α[sub V] and f[sub r], respectively, as a result of the reduced eddy-current losses and enhanced non-180° domain-wall motion-induced negative-ΔE effect in the Terfenol-D composite layers as well as the increased compliance contribution from the PVDF polymer layer to allow the motion of non-180° domain walls in the Terfenol-D composite layers. This improved resonance ME tuning effect, together with the durable and tailorable natures, makes the laminate great promise for developing into tunable ME devices.