Phosphorus content effect on the magnetoelectric properties of the Ni–P(Ni)/PZT/Ni–P(Ni) cylindrical layered composites

• Ni–P(Ni)/PZT/Ni–P(Ni) cylindrical layered magnetoelectric (ME) composites were prepared.
• αE,A dependence on HDC exhibits low Hdc,opt and a good linearity in the Ni–P/PZT/Ni–P composites.
• Ni–P/PZT/Ni–P composite with 9.87% phosphorus content has the best comprehensive ME performance.

Ni–P(Ni)/PZT/Ni–P(Ni) cylindrical layered magnetoelectric (ME) composites have been prepared with varying phosphorus content. The axial ME voltage coefficient, αE,A, was studied in this paper. The Ni–P/PZT/Ni–P composites show lower optimal magnetic field, Hdc,opt, along with better linearity of the ME voltage coefficient, compared with the Ni/PZT/Ni composite. These effects may be caused by the high permeability of Ni–P layers. This study helps selecting the appropriate phosphorus content to reduce the magnetic field on the premise of the high ME effect.