What Is a Hall Effect Sensor?
A Hall effect sensor is a sensor that detects a magnetic field and converts it into an electrical signal. Being contactless, it's very versatile.
What Is the Hall Effect?
When a magnetic field perpendicular to a current-carrying conductor is applied, a small voltage forms across the sides of the conductor (the Hall voltage). This voltage is proportional to the strength of the magnetic field; the topic is related to magnetism.
Output Type
| Type | Output | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Digital (switch) | Present/absent | Rotation counting, position |
| Analog (linear) | Proportional to field strength | Current measurement |
Where Is It Used?
Contactless current measurement, motor speed/position detection, brushless (BLDC) motor driving, speed sensors and lid open/closed detection.
Unipolar/Bipolar and Latch
Digital Hall sensors come in three behaviors: unipolar (turns on to only one magnet pole), bipolar and latch (one pole turns it on, the other off — common in brushless-motor position sensing). The right type is chosen by application.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing the magnet pole: some Hall sensors respond to only one pole.
- Increasing the distance: the magnetic field weakens rapidly with distance.
- Stray fields: another nearby magnet/current corrupts the reading.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Hall sensor measure?+
Why is it used in current measurement?+
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