Large amplitude dynamics of micro-/nanomechanical resonators actuated with electrostatic pulses

In the field of resonant nano-electro-mechanical system (NEMS) design, it is a common misconception that large-amplitude motion, and thus large signal-to-noise ratio, can only be achieved at the risk of oscillator instability. In the present paper, we show that very simple closed-loop control scheme...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied physics 2010-01, Vol.107 (1), p.014907-014907-10
Main Authors: Juillard, J., Bonnoit, A., Avignon, E., Hentz, S., Colinet, E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACCELEROMETERS
ACTUATORS
AMPLITUDES
CLOSED-LOOP CONTROL
CONTROL
DESIGN
DIMENSIONLESS NUMBERS
Dynamical Systems
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
ELECTROSTATICS
Engineering Sciences
Mathematics
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
Micro and nanotechnologies
Microelectronics
NONLINEAR PROBLEMS
OSCILLATIONS
OSCILLATORS
OTHER INSTRUMENTATION
PULSES
RESONANCE
RESONATORS
SENSORS
SIGNAL-TO-NOISE RATIO
TRANSIENTS
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Summary:In the field of resonant nano-electro-mechanical system (NEMS) design, it is a common misconception that large-amplitude motion, and thus large signal-to-noise ratio, can only be achieved at the risk of oscillator instability. In the present paper, we show that very simple closed-loop control schemes can be used to achieve stable large-amplitude motion of a resonant structure even when jump resonance (caused by electrostatic softening or Duffing hardening) is present in its frequency response. We focus on the case of a resonant accelerometer sensing cell, consisting of a nonlinear clamped-clamped beam with electrostatic actuation and detection, maintained in an oscillation state with pulses of electrostatic force that are delivered whenever the detected signal (the position of the beam) crosses zero. We show that the proposed feedback scheme ensures the stability of the motion of the beam much beyond the critical Duffing amplitude and that, if the parameters of the beam are correctly chosen, one can achieve almost full-gap travel range without incurring electrostatic pull-in. These results are illustrated and validated with transient simulations of the nonlinear closed-loop system.
ISSN:0021-8979
1089-7550
DOI:10.1063/1.3277022