Micro Motion magnet and coil assemblies (called pick-offs) are mounted on the opposing flow tubes. Pickoff coils are mounted on the side legs of one flow tube, and magnets are mounted on the side legs of the opposing flow tube.

Each coil moves through the uniform magnetic field of the adjacent magnet. The voltage generated from each pickoff coil creates a sine wave. Because the magnets are mounted on one tube, and the coils on the opposing tube, the sine waves generated represent the motion of one tube relative to the other.