Metal detectors have a significant role to play. From hunting for the buried treasures to ensuring security in airports, office buildings, prisons and schools to make sure that that no weapon gains entry into the premises. Metal detectors are put to use in various spheres of our lives that range from work, play and everything that falls in between.
Metal detectors can be operated by everyone irrespective of their age or skill sets. The treasure hunters turn on the unit and sweep the coil over the ground or waters and when you move it over any target, a flash of light or an audible sound signal is emitted. There are various types of metal detectors from simple and basic models to the ones that would cost a few thousand dollars depending on the technology and the features that they work on. In most of the advanced metal detectors, there are display systems that tell you the depth at which the target object is located, making it far easier for those indulging in metal search.
Metal detectors work on various technologies like Beat-frequency oscillation, Very low frequency (VLF) and Pulse induction (PI).
Metal detectors including gold and silver detecting gadgets make use of the presence of eddy currents emitted by conductive objects to track the target. Most of the metal detectors have a frequency that range from 3-20 kHz which is found to produce the best results. There are models that allow you to even change the frequency on different types of fields making it an effective all terrain apparatus that can be used on both land and in water with equal ease.
The latest generation of metal detectors use pulse induction technology where it sets off a strong electromagnetic pulse along the ground and the length of time it takes for the voltage to get dropped to the ambient levels. The presence of a target is indicated by a longer time for the voltage to fall, which is picked up by the hyper sensitive modern sensors that are used in these metal detectors. PI detectors can be effectively used even in highly mineralized black sand zones with efficacy and is popular among professional treasure hunters.
How Do Metal Detectors Work?