TRANSDUCER:

Anything that can convert one form of energy into another form of energy is called a
transducer. An electrical transducer is a device which is capable of converting the physical
quantity into a proportional electrical quantity such as voltage or electric current.

For example, even a speaker contains a transducer as it converts electrical signal to pressure
waves (sound).

Types of transducer:
There are of many different types of transducer, they can be classified based on various
criteria as:

Types of Transducer based on Quantity to be Measured

Temperature transducers (e.g. a thermocouple)

Pressure transducers (e.g. a diaphragm)
Displacement transducers (e.g. LVDT)
Flow transducers

Types of Transducer based on the Principle of Operation

Photovoltaic ( e.g. a solar cell )

Piezoelectric
Chemical
Mutual Induction
Electromagnetic
Hall effect
Photoconductors

Types of Transducer based on Whether an External Power Source is required or not

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Active Transducer:

Active transducers are those which do not require any power source for their operation.
They work on the energy conversion principle. They produce an electrical signal proportional to
the input (physical quantity).

Passive Transducers:

Transducers which require an external power source for their operation is called as a
passive transducer.

PIEZOELECTRIC TRANSDUCER:
Principle:
Piezoelectric Effect is the ability of certain materials to generate an electric charge in
response to applied mechanical stress. The word Piezoelectric is derived from the Greek
piezein, which means to squeeze or press, and piezo, which is Greek for push.

One of the unique characteristics of the piezoelectric effect is that it is reversible,

meaning that materials exhibiting the direct piezoelectric effect (the generation of electricity
when stress is applied) also exhibit the converse piezoelectric effect (the generation of stress
when an electric field is applied).

When piezoelectric material is placed under mechanical stress, a shifting of the positive
and negative charge centers in the material takes place, which then results in an external
electrical field. When reversed, an outer electrical field either stretches or compresses the
piezoelectric material

Working:

The main principle of a piezoelectric transducer is that a force, when applied on the
quartz crystal, produces electric charges on the crystal surface. The charge thus produced can be
called as piezoelectricity. Piezo electricity can be defined as the electrical polarization produced
by mechanical strain on certain class of crystals. The rate of charge produced will be
proportional to the rate of change of force applied as input. As the charge produced is very small,
a charge amplifier is needed so as to produce an output voltage big enough to be measured. The
device is also known to be mechanically stiff. For example, if a force of 15 kiloN is given to the
transducer, it may only deflect to a maximum of 0.002mm. But the output response may be as
high as 100KiloHz.This proves that the device is best applicable for dynamic measurement.

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 Materials used:

The materials are :

1. Barium Titanate.
2. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT).
3. Rochelle salt.

Advantages of piezoelectric:

Very high frequency response.

Self generating, so no need of external source.
Simple to use as they have small dimensions and large measuring range.
Barium titanate and quartz can be made in any desired shape and form. It also has a large
dielectric constant. The crystal axis is selectable by orienting the direction of orientation.

Disadvantages:

It is not suitable for measurement in static condition.

Since the device operates with the small electric charge, they need high impedance cable for
electrical interface.
The output may vary according to the temperature variation of the crystal.
The relative humidity rises above 85% or falls below 35%, its output will be affected. If so, it has
to be coated with wax or polymer material.

Applications:

1)Speakers:
A piezoelectric speaker or buzzer is a loudspeaker that uses the piezoelectric effect for
generating sound. The initial mechanical motion is created by applying a voltage to a
piezoelectric material, and this motion is typically converted into audible sound using
diaphragms and resonators. Compared to other speaker designs piezoelectric speakers are
relatively easy to drive.

2) Automobile seat belts lock in response to a rapid deceleration is also done by

piezoelectric material.

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3)It is also used in medical diagnostics.

4)Electric lighter:
An electric Lighter has three main parts, the igniter, the gas valve and supply, and the
clicking mechanism. The igniter is a piezoelectric igniter. It consists of a piezoelectric material,
and two metal bases. A piezoelectric material produces a spike of voltage if it is bent or pressed
or deformed. The two other metals collect the voltage. The clicking mechanism allows you to
press on the piezoelectric material really fast and hard and a large voltage but small current
electricity is produced. The voltage is about 10000 volts. The metal collects it and using a wire it
carries it on to the top of the lighter where there is a spring at a distance of about 1 cm from the
wire. The voltage is so high that a spark jumps from the wire to the spring. But as soon as you
click the mechanism it also opens the gas opening at the right time and so the spark from the
wire to the spring turns into fire and stays lighted as long as you press on it.

5) They are used for studying high speed shock waves and blast waves.

6) Used in fertility treatment.

7)Inkjet printers:
An ink tank supplies the ink to the dispenser through a narrow tube by capillary action. A
droplet of ink from the tank sits waiting at the very end of the tube. When the printer circuit
wants to fire an ink droplet, it energizes two electrical contacts attached to the piezoelectric
crystal. The energized piezoelectric crystal flexes outward. It squashes against a membrane,
pushing that toward the right as well. The membrane pushes against a hole in the ink dispenser ,
increasing the pressure there. The pressure forces the waiting ink droplet from the tube toward
the paper.

8)Used in automatic doors:

When person is near the door a pressure is exerted persons weight on the sensors due to
which the electric effect is produced and the door opens automatically.

9)Accelerometer:
A piezoelectric accelerometer consists of a mass attached to a piezoelectric crystal which
is mounted on a case. When the accelerometer body is subjected to vibration, the mass on the
crystal remains undisturbed in space due to inertia. As a result, the mass compresses and
stretches the piezoelectric crystal. This force is proportional to acceleration in accordance with
Newtons second law, F = ma, and generates a charge.

Benefits of Piezoelectric Accelerometer

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The key benefits of piezoelectric accelerometers are:

Wide frequency range

No moving parts
Excellent linearity over their dynamic range
Low output noise
Self-generating - no external power required
Acceleration signal can be integrated to provide velocity and displacement

Applications

Major applications of piezoelectric accelerometers include:

Engine testing - Combustion and dynamic stressing

Ballistics - Combustion, explosion, and detonation
Industrial/factory - Machining systems, metal cutting, and machine health monitoring
Original equipment manufacturer - Transportation systems, rockets, machine tools,
engines, flexible structures, and shock/vibration testers
Engineering - Dynamic response testing, shock and vibration isolation, auto chassis
structural testing, structural analysis, reactors, control systems and materials evaluation
Aerospace - Ejection systems, rocketry, landing gear hydraulics, shock tube
instrumentation, wind tunnel and modal testing.

10)Force sensor:
An amplifier is used to convert the high impedance electrical signal (produced by the
piezoelectric) to a low impedance signal. This makes it apt for use with an instrument like a
digital storage oscilloscope. Digital storage of the signal is obligatory in order to enable analysis
of the signal before it decomposes.
Applications:
Based upon the application needs, dynamic force can be measured as either

Compression,
Tensile, or
Torque force

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Applications may incorporate

The measurement of spring or sliding friction forces,

Chain tensions,
Clutch release forces,
Peel strengths of laminates, labels, and pull tabs

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Clipper
An electronic device that is used to evade the output of a circuit to go beyond the present
value (voltage level) without varying the remaining part of the input waveform is called as
Clipper circuit.

Working of Clipper Circuit:

A basic clipper constitutes of one or two diodes in series or shunt manner. When the
voltage supply is given the diode acts as short circuit only when the required voltage is given. If
the supplied voltage increases or decreases beyond a limit the diode starts working as open
circuit. Due to this process only certain voltage of voltage

Different types of clippers and its working:

1)Positive clippers:

In positive clipper the positive cycle of the supply is removed.

Series:
In case of series, when the positive cycle enters the circuit the diode acts as
closed switch allowing the voltage to flow through it and stops it from reaching the
output. But in negative cycle the diode is open and no voltage flows through it, so
the negative cycle completely reaches the output.

Shunt:
In case of shunt, when the positive cycle enters the circuit the diode acts as
open circuit not allowing the supply. When the negative cycle is give the diode
makes it closed circuit and supply flows through.

The waveform is

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2)Negative clipper:
In negative clipper the negative cycle of the supply is removed.

Series:
During the positive half cycle the diode appears in the forward biased
and conducts such that the entire positive half cycle of input appears across the
resistor connected in parallel as output waveform. During the negative half cycle
the diode is in reverse biased, so no output is obtained.

Shunt:
During the positive half the diode is in reverse bias i.e. open circuit so the
full positive cycle is obtained. During the negative half it is in forward bias, so the
supply flows through the diode and not to the output.

The waveform is

3)Biased clippers:
In few situation some part of positive and negative cycle have to be removed for these
purposes biased clippers are used.

a)Biased positive clipper:

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