The Boeing Company

Stephen P Hubbell

Robert James Miller

William Preston Geren

A multiferroic element may include a substrate formed on an electrically conductive ground plane. The substrate may be formed from a material having a predetermined elastic modulus. A layer of piezoelectric material may be formed on the substrate. A layer of magnetostrictive material may be bonded to the layer of piezoelectric material. A mechanical strain is created in the layer of piezoelectric material in response to a voltage signal being applied to the multiferroic element. The mechanical strain in the layer of piezoelectric material causes a mechanical strain in the layer of magnetostrictive material to produce a radio frequency magnetic field that is proportional to the voltage signal for generating a radio frequency electromagnetic wave. The predetermined elastic modulus of the substrate is substantially lower than an elastic modulus of the layer of piezoelectric material.

Multiferroic antenna and transmitter

A multiferroic antenna and sensor where the sensor includes a multiferroic stack of multiple connected multiferroic layer-pairs, each multiferroic layer-pair comprising an alternating layer of a magnetostrictive material and a piezoelectric material bonded together enabling a high signal sensitivity, a magnetic field of an incident signal causing mechanical strain in the magnetostrictive material layers that strains adjacent piezoelectric material layers producing an electrical voltage in each multiferroic layer-pair proportional to the incident signal. An output of the multiferroic stack comprises the electrical voltage amplified proportional to a total number of multiple connected multiferroic layer-pairs in the multiferroic stack.

Multiferroic antenna/sensor

A magnetic field sensor which can be used as an active antenna is disclosed that is capable of small size, ultrawideband operation, and high efficiency. The sensor includes a multiplicity of magnetic field transducers, e.g., superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs) or Mach-Zehnder modulators, that are electrically coupled in a serial array. Dummy SQUIDs may be used about the perimeter of the SQUID array, and electrically coupled to the active SQUIDs for eliminating edge effects that otherwise would occur because of the currents that flow within the SQUIDs. Either a magnetic flux transformer which collects the magnetic flux and distributes the flux to the transducers or a feedback assembly (bias circuit) or both may be used for increasing the sensitivity and linear dynamic range of the antenna.

Wideband, high dynamic range antenna

Sensitive slot antenna including inductively coupled squid array

Electrically small, wideband, high dynamic range antenna having a serial

Method for using a wideband, high linear dynamic range sensor

Method using squid array for improving the sensitivity of a slot antenna

A magnetic field sensor which can be used as an active antenna is disclosed that is capable of small size, ultrawideband operation, and high efficiency. The sensor includes a multiplicity of magnetic field transducers, e.g., superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs) that are electrically coupled in a serial array. Dummy SQUIDs may be used about the perimeter of the array, and electrically coupled to the active SQUIDs for eliminating the edge effects on the active SQUIDs. A magnetic flux transformer may be used in combination with a feedback assembly for increasing the sensitivity and linear dynamic range of the active antenna.

Growing community of inventors

Gig Harbor, WA, United States of America

Stephen P Hubbell