Single crystal silicon Lorentz force actuated micromirror and MEMS blazed grating for optics and sensors

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Date
2016-01-18
Authors
Li, Meiting
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Abstract
Micromirrors and diffraction gratings were developed for spectroscopy and magnetic field sensor in this thesis. MEMS blazed gratings were successfully fabricated in different grating periodicities to cover a wide infrared wavelength range. Lorentz force actuated micromirrors were investigated, and two types of mirrors were fabricated: rotating and pop-up micromirrors. The deflection angle of the mirrors was controllable by altering the driving current on the mirror. Deflection angle vs. driving current was studied for different mirror types and different spring dimensions. A Lorentz force based magnetic field sensor is also demonstrated. The sensor employs the rotating micromirror as a resonator. With an AC current flowing around the micromirror, a periodic Lorentz force is generated which drives the resonator. The rotational amplitude of the micromirror is measured with an optical positioning system and external circuits. The highest resolution of the magnetic field sensor is 0.4 nT at 50 mArms, and 53 mHz filter bandwidth. With appropriate current level, this sensor can measure a wide range of magnetic field, from nT to T.
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Keywords
MEMS, Micromirror, Lorentz force, Actuator, Magnetic field sensor, Silicon resonantor, Optical sensing
Citation
Park, Byoungyoul, et al. "Lorentz force based resonant MEMS magnetic-field sensor with optical readout." Sensors and Actuators A: Physical 241 (2016): 12-18.