Investigation of Static and Dynamic Pull-in Instability in a FGP Micro-Beam

Abstract

In this paper, static and dynamic behavior of a fully clamped functionally graded piezoelectric micro-beam, subjected to simultaneous electrostatic and piezoelectric actuations is investigated. The micro-beam is composed of silicon and PZ4 as a piezoelectric material. Applying DC piezoelectric voltage results in the generation of an axial force and as a result the equivalent bending stiffness of the micro-beam changes. The tunability of the bending stiffness due to piezoelectric actuation is used to stabilize the pull-in instability. The nonlinear governing equation of the motion is derived using Hamiltonian principle and discretized to a single degree of freedom system using Galerkin method. The static and dynamic pull-in voltages corresponding to various piezoelectric voltages are determined. The ratio of the static to dynamic pull-in voltages is in good agreement with those of the literature.