Abstract
MEMS (Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems) sensors enable a vast range of applications: among others, the use of MEMS accelerometers for seismology related applications has been emerging considerably in the last decade. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive review of the capacitive MEMS accelerometers: from the physical functioning principles, to the details of the technical precautions, and to the manufacturing procedures. We introduce the applications within seismology and earth sciences related disciplines, namely: earthquake observation and seismological studies, seismic surveying and imaging, structural health monitoring of buildings. Moreover, we describe how the use of the miniaturized technologies is revolutionizing these fields and we present some cutting edge applications that, in the very last years, are taking advantage from the use of MEMS sensors, such as rotational seismology and gravity measurements. In a ten-year outlook, the capability of MEMS sensors will certainly improve through the optimization of existing technologies, the development of new materials, and the implementation of innovative production processes. In particular, the next generation of MEMS seismometers could be capable of reaching a noise floor under the lower seismic noise (few tenths of ng/) and expanding the bandwidth towards lower frequencies (∼0.01 Hz).
Highlights
Progresses in seismology firmly rely on the development of instrumentation
We introduce the theoretical basics of the capacitive Mechanical Systems (MEMS)
Another field of application of MEMS accelerometers is the seismic surveying and imaging both for deep and shallow investigation; fundamentally, they are suitable for the active techniques, i.e., those involving an artificial source for generating the seismic waves
Summary
Progresses in seismology firmly rely on the development of instrumentation. The first, pioneering tools, were only used to display the ground shaking after the strongest earthquakes. Further developments in the future will likely improve even more the present-day capabilities, not without a tendency for the price of professional instruments to rise exponentially For this reason, at least for some applications, the trend is a compromise between the quality of the sensor and the quality of the results, which, in the last few decades, resulted especially in the technological development of miniaturized systems. This review aims to provide the state-of-the-art of the use of MEMS in the broad field of seismology after about 10 years from the first significant applications. At present, such contribution is missing, with only a short review recently proposed [12]. We present the present-day applications and give an outlook for the possible future ones
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
