Open AccessThe Design of Pick‐up Coil Detectors for Spinner Magnetometers
Author(s) -
Oorschot B. P. J.
Publication year - 1958
Publication title -
geophysical journal of the royal astronomical society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.302
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1365-246X
pISSN - 0016-8009
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-246x.1958.tb05343.x
Subject(s) - gravitational field , precession , physics , geodesy , earth's rotation , gravitational constant , hydrostatic equilibrium , gravitation , gravitational potential , rotation (mathematics) , harmonic , plane (geometry) , satellite , geophysics , earth (classical element) , geology , classical mechanics , mathematics , astronomy , geometry , quantum mechanics
Summary The theory of pick‐up coil design is developed to enable the signal‐to‐noise ratio to be maximized at the output of the preamplifier. It is shown that there are dimensions for which double coils reach maximum sensitivity. The performance of these coils can be further improved by varying the cross‐sectional area of the wire throughout the coil. The cross‐sectional shape of such coils is unimportant once certain dimensions are reached. Circular coils are sufficiently close to optimum sensitivity to justify the rejection of more complex shapes with their attendant constructional problems. The diameter of the wire used in the winding of the pick‐up coil does not affect the sensitivity of the transducer. However, it may be used to match the coil to the preamplifier. A pick‐up coil has been constructed whose performance is in close agreement with that predicted analytically. Its sensitivity is superior to that of flux gates used in modern spinner magnetometers. The use of a pick‐up coil as a detector thus warrants more serious consideration than has been accorded to it in recent years.