MAGNETOMETER

A magnetometer is an instrument used to measure the strength and/or

direction of the magnetic field in the vicinity of the instrument. Most
magnetometers contain a magnetic device sensitive to an external magnetic
field.
Magnetometer consists of mainly two parts
Magnetic sensor
Electronic unit

Generalized magnetometer block diagram

INDUCTION MAGNETOMETER
Search coil magnetometer
Fluxgate magnetometer

Faraday's law of magnetic induction is a basic law

of electromagnetism predicting how a magnetic field will interact
with an electric circuit to produce an electromotive force (EMF)a
phenomenon called electromagnetic induction.

OR

N is the number of turns of wire, B is the magnetic flux through

a single loop and
is the induced electromotive force (EMF)

FLUXGATE MAGNETOMETER
Fluxgate magnetometers are based on the principle of saturation of
magnetic materials.

SETUP

FUNCTIONAL OPERATION OF FLUXGATE MAGNETOMETER

It consists of two saturable cores
position.

and

in the opposite saturation

To model the response of the magnetometer electronics, voltage is

expressed in a Fourier series as

In the absence of external magnetic field

We will have

as

The ratio of second harmonic to the first is

SEARCHCOIL MAGNETOMETER

Search coil magnetometer are wound coils around a core of high magnetic
permeability (ferromagnetic core). Search coils concentrate magnetic field
lines inside the core along with fluctuations. The benefit of these
magnetometers is that they measure alternating magnetic field and so can
resolve changes in magnetic fields quickly, many times per second.
The emf induced in the coil in the presence of the magnetic field produces a
voltage V , given by

Search-coil magnetometers based on the above principle are used mainly on

spin- stabilized to provide precise phase information

ADVANTAGES
Some of the advantages of using a magnetometer are the
relatively low cost, and low power requirements.
It works very well in LEO (lower earth orbit).

DISADVANTAGES
The main disadvantage is the magnetic disturbance fields within
the satellite