Engineering mechanical resonances of magnetoelectric transducers

Magnetoelectric transducers are being investigated as a promising alternative for wireless power transfer in cases where small device size and/or low operation frequency are desired. To maximize the output power of such transducers, operation at their mechanical resonance frequency is imperative. However, a reduction in size along the direction of oscillation is intrinsically accompanied by an increase in resonance frequency. Here, we report on a computational shape optimization strategy to minimize the resonance frequency in magnetoelectric transducers by ≈38% within a set of given optimization constraints. We show that our algorithm can be used to guide the design of magnetoelectric transducers optimized to operate at different resonance frequencies and allows for consistent frequency spacing between transducers, thus enabling separately addressable devices and clustered operation. Finally, we propose four needle-shaped devices that could be used as bioimplants that impose minimal tissue damage upon direct insertion into tissue. The increase in resonance frequency associated with the needle shape is overcompensated by a frequency minimization step. Our work paves the way for computationally guided resonance frequency tuning in the field of magnetoelectric transducers.