A Novel Mass Sensor Incoporating Multiple Internal Resonances in Coupled Resonators Under Electrostatic Actuation

Abstract

Abstract Nonlinearly coupled vibrations in microelectromechanical sensors have received much attention for their great potential in improving sensor performance. In this paper, a novel mass sensor based on multiple internal resonances of three electrostatically coupled resonators is proposed. The mathematical model of the sensor is established by using Euler-Bernoulli theory, and the dynamic response before and after mass perturbation is solved by using the method of multiple scales, and verified by the harmonic balance method combined with the asymptotic numerical method. The relative shift of the amplitude sum induced by the mass perturbation at the saddle-node bifurcation point is used as the output sensitivity, and the sensitivity is enhanced by three orders of magnitude compared with the relative shift of frequency. Finally, the effect of driving voltage on the sensitivity of the mass sensor is analyzed.