For decades the RAM-to-disk memory hierarchy gap has plagued computer architects. An exciting new storage technology based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) is poised to ll a large portion of this performance gap, signi cantly reduce system power consumption, and enable many new applications. This paper explores the system-level implications of integrating MEMS-based storage into the mem...

MEMS processes and components are rapidly changing in device design, processing, and, most importantly, application. This paper will discuss the future challenges faced by the MEMS failure analysis as the field of MEMS (fabrication, component design, and applications) grows. Specific areas of concern for the failure analyst will also be discussed.

Micro-electro-mechanical systems or MEMS are used in a variety of today’s technology and can be modeled using equations for nonlinear damped harmonic oscillators. Mathematical expressions have been formulated to determine resonance frequency shifts as a result of hardening and softening effects in MEMS devices. In this work we experimentally test the previous theoretical analysis of MEMS resona...

this paper presents a wide band RF MEMS VCO operating at 10 GHz. The designed VCO is based on high performances RF MEMS solenoid inductor. We have used HFSS software for design and analysis of different RF MEMS solenoid inductors. Best performances are obtained using SU8 dielectric substrate and copper coil: Qmax= 60.9, L = 2.6 nH at 10 GHz, and SRF= 20.8 GHz. Moreover, we have investigated the...

We describe a wireless system for actuating and detecting the motion of MHz-frequency, low dissipation MEMS resonators. The overall system is essentially a custom-designed RFID-like system, with the tags based upon unique MEMS chips as opposed to conventional RFID chips. The MEMS devices are vacuum encapsulated, rugged, CMOS-compatible, and are approximately 1mm-by-1mm-by-0.5mm. The system is p...

MEMS thermal shear-stress sensors exploit heat-transfer effects to measure the shear stress exerted by an air flow on its solid boundary, and have promising applications in aerodynamic control. Classical theory for conventional, macroscale thermal shear-stress sensors states that the rate of heat removed by the flow from the sensor is proportional to the 1/3-power of the shear stress. However, ...

In this paper, an Adaptive Neuro Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) based control is proposed for the tracking of a Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) gyroscope sensor. The ANFIS is used to train parameters of the controller for tracking a desired trajectory. Numerical simulations for a MEMS gyroscope are looked into to check the effectiveness of the ANFIS control scheme. It proves that the sy...

Over the last few years, considerable effort has gone into the study of the failure mechanisms and reliability of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). Although still very incomplete, our knowledge of the reliability issues relevant to MEMS is growing. This paper provides an overview of MEMS failure mechanisms that are commonly encountered. It focuses on the reliability issues of micro-scale d...

Technological problems for realization of Micro Electro-mechanical System (MEMS) are discussed and an introduction of smart materials (PZT) is encouraged. The film formation and micromachining technology are discussed in integration of PZT thin films into MEMS. Further developments are proposed on PZT micro sensors and actuators with special emphasis laid on exploration of new application field...

We present fully integrated high-performance voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs) with on-chip microelectromechanical system (MEMS) inductors for the first time. MEMS inductors have been realized from the unique CMOS-compatible MEMS process that we have developed to provide suspended thick metal structures for high-quality ( ) factors. Fully integrated CMOS VCOs have been fabricated by monolit...