Compact fluxgate magnetic full-tensor gradiometer with spherical feedback coil

The magnetic tensor gradiometer, which is used for measuring the spatial derivatives of three orthogonal magnetic field components, is an important magnetic field characterization tool. Here, the construction of a magnetic full-tensor gradiometer is described, which utilizes four fluxgates arranged on a planar cross structure, and a single, triaxial, spherical feedback coil assembly. In this arrangement, one of the fluxgates is used as a reference, controlling the currents through the feedback coils. Since the fluxgates are working in the near-zero magnetic field environment, the magnetic tensor gradiometer is stable and of an improved accuracy. This design avoids the crosstalk normally caused by individual feedback coils for each fluxgate, and reduces the orthogonality and orientation errors. Moreover, the calibration parameters can be directly inferred using the spherical feedback coil. The measured gradient tensor magnitude can reach 0.52 nT/m/Hz(1/2) @ 1 Hz in unshielded laboratory conditions, while exhibiting good noise immunity. The functionality of the system is verified by locating a small, single, permanent, and dipole magnet in space. The gradiometer is compact, while employing global feedback, and therefore it is especially suitable for deployment on space-constrained moving platforms.