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JournalISSN: 0924-4247

Sensors and Actuators A-physical 

Elsevier BV
About: Sensors and Actuators A-physical is an academic journal published by Elsevier BV. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Actuator & Silicon. It has an ISSN identifier of 0924-4247. Over the lifetime, 13396 publications have been published receiving 414787 citations. The journal is also known as: Sensors and actuators A.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Electrostrictive polymer (EP) dielectric actuators have been shown to produce 5 to 20 times the effective actuation pressure of conventional air-gap electrostatics at the same electric field strength as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The electrostriction of elastomeric polymer dielectrics with compliant electrodes is potentially useful as a small-scale, solid-state actuator technology. Electrostrictive polymer (EP) materials are capable of efficient and fast response with high strains (> 30%), good actuation pressures (up to 1.9 MPa), and high specific energy densities (up to 0.1 J g−1). In this article, the mechanism of electrostriction is shown to be due to the electrostatic attraction of free charges on the electrodes. Although EP actuators are electrostatics based, they are shown to produce 5–20 times the effective actuation pressure of conventional air-gap electrostatics at the same electric field strength. The thin uniform dielectric films necessary for fabrication of EP actuators have been fabricated by techniques such as spin coating, casting, and dipping. A variety of materials and techniques have been used to produce the compliant electrodes, including lift-off stenciling techniques for powdered graphite, selective wetting of ionically conductive polymers, and spray coating of carbon blacks and fibrils in polymeric binders. Prototype actuators have been demonstrated in a variety of configurations such as stretched films, stacks, rolls, tubes, and unimorphs. Potential applications of the technology in areas such as microrobots, sound generators, and displays are discussed in this article.

1,436 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a microgenerator that generates electricity from mechanical energy when embedded in a vibrating medium, and the power produced is proportional to the cube of the frequency of vibration, and that the mass deflection should be as large as possible.
Abstract: Supplying power to remote microsystems that have no physical connection to the outside world is difficult, and using batteries is not always appropriate. A solution is offered by the device proposed in this paper, which generates electricity from mechanical energy when embedded in a vibrating medium. This microgenerator has dimensions of around 5 mm × 5 mm × 1 mm. Analysis predicts that the power produced is proportional to the cube of the frequency of vibration, and that to maximize power generation the mass deflection should be as large as possible. Power generation of 1 μW at 70 Hz and 0.1 mW at 330 Hz are predicted for a typical device, assuming a deflection of 50 μm.

1,326 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The recent research and development activities in structural health monitoring using FBG sensors have been critically reviewed, highlighting the areas where further work is needed.
Abstract: In-service structural health monitoring (SHM) of engineering structures has assumed a significant role in assessing their safety and integrity. Fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensors have emerged as a reliable, in situ, non-destructive tool for monitoring, diagnostics and control in civil structures. The versatility of FBG sensors represents a key advantage over other technologies in the structural sensing field. In this article, the recent research and development activities in structural health monitoring using FBG sensors have been critically reviewed, highlighting the areas where further work is needed. A few packaging schemes for FBG strain sensors are also discussed. Finally a few limitations and market barriers associated with the use of these sensors have been addressed.

858 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a cantilever device is designed to have a flat structure with a proof mass added to the end to create electrical energy via the piezoelectric effect.
Abstract: A thin film lead zirconate titanate, Pb(Zr,Ti)O 3 (PZT), MEMS power generating device is developed. It is designed to resonate at specific frequencies from an external vibrational energy source, thereby creating electrical energy via the piezoelectric effect. Our cantilever device is designed to have a flat structure with a proof mass added to the end. The Pt/Ti top electrode is patterned into an interdigitated shape on top of the sol–gel-spin coated PZT thin film in order to employ the d33 mode of the piezoelectric transducer. This d33 mode design generates 20 times higher voltage than that of the d31 mode design of the same beam dimension. The base-shaking experiments at the first resonant frequency (13.9 kHz) generate charge proportional to the tip displacement of the cantilever with a linearity coefficient of 4.14 pC/ m. A

825 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This work presents an overview of progress and developments in the field of fiber optic sensor technology, highlighting the major issues underpinning recent research and illustrating a number of important applications and key areas of effective Fiber optic sensor development.
Abstract: This work presents an overview of progress and developments in the field of fiber optic sensor technology, highlighting the major issues underpinning recent research and illustrating a number of important applications and key areas of effective fiber optic sensor development.

823 citations

Performance
Metrics
No. of papers from the Journal in previous years
YearPapers
2023245
2022409
2021724
2020603
2019566
2018625