Deconvolution of High-Resolution Magnetic Field Scans for Improved Current Density Imaging

Inverse problems are gaining more and more importance in the field of nondestructive testing (NDT). Magnetic imaging is an NDT method, which leads to an inverse problem if the underlying current density should be determined. With the current density, characteristics of an electrical conductor such as the geometry or the conductivity can be determined. In particular, for analyzing novel electrically conductive materials, the uniformity of the conductivity is a critical characteristic. A deconvolution-based method is presented to determine the current density distribution within an inhomogeneous electrical conductor from the resulting magnetic field measured with a state-of-the-art giant magnetoresistive magnetometer.