Numerical simulation and design of a fluxset sensor by finite element method

A 3D model of a fluxset sensor serving to measure the magnetic fields arising in eddy current nondestructive testing applications is analyzed by the finite element method. The voltage induced in the pick-up coil is obtained by computing the flux of the core of the sensor for several values of the exciting current at various external fields. It is shown that the time shift of the ensuing voltage impulse depends linearly on the external field in a wide range. The behavior of the sensor is furthermore simulated in a real nondestructive testing arrangement consisting of an exciting coil located above a conducting plate with a crack.