Effective excitation of magnetoelectric voltage harmonics in a ferromagnet–piezoelectric structure by current passing through the magnetic layer

The magnetoelectric (ME) effect in a planar amorphous ferromagnet–piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT) composite structure can be effectively excited by passing alternating current through the magnetic layer. The absence of demagnetizing (stray) field and the orientation of the exciting magnetic field perpendicular to the constant field allow this structure to generate the even harmonics of electric field with efficiency several times that for the ME effect produced by volume coils. It is established that the second harmonic amplitude is proportional to the piezomagnetic coefficient of the magnetic layer and the square amplitude of current and inversely proportional to the bias magnetic field.