Novel Giant Magnetoimpedance Magnetic Field Sensor

The idea, design, and tests of the novel GMI sensor are presented, based on the compensation measurement principle, where the local ‘zero-field’ minimum of the double-peak characteristic was utilized as a sensitive null detector. The compensation field was applied in real-time with the help of microprocessor-based, two-step, quasi-Newtonian optimization. The process of material parameters optimization through Joule-annealing of chosen amorphous alloys is described. The presented results of the prototype test unit show linear output characteristic, low measurement uncertainty, and resistance against time and temperature drift.

The return of “pay” and how to optimise it

Purpose There is a strange paradox at play in workplaces today – and it has all to do with that most basic of needs: “pay”. Employees might well be working longer hours and taking out more second jobs, but the amount of money they have left in their pockets simply is not keeping pace with the cost of living. Design/methodology/approach This paper examines how pay has shot back to the top of the things employees most want from their employer, but (despite this) it also examines the extent to which pay – the greatest cost most businesses face – seems overlooked in terms of being measured with the same sort of ROI rigour as other business costs. Findings Most firms would not invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in new IT if it did not yield some form of efficiency/productivity return but, as this paper argues, many firms can quite easily see the total pay of their employees’ pay rise by the same amount, and yet they know nothing about whether paying some staff more than others will actually boost productivity and profitability. Originality/value It is this paper’s view that compensation measurement and management is vital if businesses are to understand how what they pay impacts performance. Firms that use data may discover they do not need to improve everyone’s pay by the same amount to boost their productivity, but they can do more targeting compensation around key people and key performers.