Abstract
Comprehensive analysis on the modal characteristics of V-shaped electrothermal microactuators is presented in this paper for the first time. Considering the unique geometric characteristics of the V-shaped beam, that is, two inclined beams supporting a movable shuttle, both the lateral and longitudinal deflections are taken into account in the modal analysis. Boundary and continuity conditions are employed to obtain the frequency equation. Natural frequencies are then obtained by solving the frequency equation. Mode shapes corresponding to their natural frequencies are also calculated analytically. The theoretical modal analysis is verified with the finite element analysis using ANSYS software. Based on the model analysis, this paper further investigates the relationship between natural frequencies and the volume scaling of the V-shaped beam. Finally, comprehensive parametric studies in terms of material properties and structural dimensions are conducted to provide insights and guidance in designing the V-shaped beam electrothermal microactuators.
Highlights
Electrothermal microactuators have been developed for a variety of applications in MEMS including RF switches [1], micropumps [2], microgrippers [3, 4], nanopositioners [5, 6], and microtesting devices [7]
Compared to other types of actuation mechanisms such as electrostatic [8], electromagnetic [9], and piezoelectric [10], electrothermal microactuators work on the thermal expansions of beam structures and have been demonstrated to be compact, stable, and large displacement and force techniques [11, 12]
Restricted by the current bulk micromachining process, it is difficult, if not impossible, to fabricate an out-of-plane microactuator with three-dimensional features. erefore, most out-of-plane electrothermal actuators are designed based on existing in-plane actuator structures [17]
Summary
Electrothermal microactuators have been developed for a variety of applications in MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) including RF switches [1], micropumps [2], microgrippers [3, 4], nanopositioners [5, 6], and microtesting devices [7]. In the case of the V-shaped beam, due to the existence of the inclined angle, besides the lateral deflections, longitudinal beam deflections are created for this symmetric structure In what follows, both the longitudinal and lateral vibrations will be taken into account in the modal analysis of the V-shaped beam electrothermal microactuators. Since the equations of motion for the lateral and longitudinal vibrations in (1) and (2) involve the fourth-order and second-order derivatives with respect to x, respectively, six boundary or continuity conditions are required to obtain the frequency equation. Substituting (16) and (17) into (5) and (6) and noticing that D1, C1, and C3 equal to zero, the mode shapes of the lateral and longitudinal vibrations are calculated, respectively, as follows.
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