Controlled magnetostrictive actuation and applications

The availability of rare earth metals in commercial quantities lead to the discovery of highly magnetostrictive alloys containing terbium (Tb) and dysprosium (Dy) with iron (Fe). The first of the components generates the strains, the second minimises the field strengths required to generate the strains and the iron allows the alloy´s exceptional transduction properties to be used at or above room temperature. The use of these materials for magnetostrictive actuators and applications of the actuators are briefly outlined