Numerical study of the non-linear vibrations of electrically actuated curved micro-beams considering thermoelastic damping

Abstract

Thermoelastic damping is a major source of intrinsic damping in vacuum operated Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS). In this article, the non-linear vibration of electrically actuated curved micro-beams is investigated, considering the effect of thermoelastic damping. The coupled thermoelasticity equations are derived on the basis of non-classical formulation, which is the modified couple stress theory and generalized heat conduction thermoelasticity equation. Afterwards, the order of the governing equations is reduced using the Generalized Differential Quadrature Method (GQDM). The validation of the derived model is achieved through comparison with existing published results. Then the effects of design parameters on snap-through buckling and pull-in instability have been investigated. Furthermore, it is observed that the GDQM with small number of nonuniform grid spacing performs accurate results without dealing with complicated shape functions and integrations. Finally the coupled thermo-mechanical modal analysis is carried out by FE simulation.