Large signal deflection of the beam is an approach that may be used in the estimation of the maximum detectable signal. Many laboratory techniques have been developed in recent years to manufacture microdevices; software has also been developed to simulate these devices to assist studies of physical structures, layouts and analysis of these miniature systems. CoventorWare software was designed to accurately reproduce MEMS design models and support both system-level and physical design approaches. The system-level approach used libraries of tools with a high-speed system simulator to create twodimensional layer outputs, and the physical approach converted the two-dimensional models to three-dimensional models. The major components of this software are the Material Properties Database (MPD), Processor Editor, Architect, Designer, Meshing, Analyzer and Systems Integrator. Structure and design Silicon was the basic material used to build up the microcantilever using MEMS tools in CoventorWare 2006. The initial dimensions are shown in Table 1. The commercial and structural properties of the silicon are well known throughout the electronics industry and silicon also is the material of choice in MEMS development. The base (ground) and beam of the cantilever in this study also consisted of silicon. A mass, made of nickel, was added on top of the beam to improve the magnetic sensitivity. Nickel was selected as one of three ferromagnetic materials considered to improve the beam’s sensitivity to a magnetic field. The beam was designed to be fixed at one end, allowing the other end to be free. This cantilever design is called a free-end cantilever beam. The area of the beam (the movable plate) is smaller than the area of the base (the fixed plate). Two layers of aluminium film were used to compose the capacitor. One aluminium layer was attached to the bottom of the beam and the other attached to the top of the base, making each layer an electrode. Fig. 1 shows the side view of the cantilever design and meshed model. The deflection of the beam in response to the magnetic field of an externally-applied current, is used to