Title of dissertation: LEAD ZIRCONATE TITANATE THIN FILMS FOR PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATION AND SENSING OF MEMS RESONATORS Brett Harold Piekarski, Doctor of Philosophy, 2005 Dissertation directed by: Professor Donald DeVoe Department of Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering Graduate Program This research is focused on examining the potential benefits and limitations of applying sol-gel lead zirco...

Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) is the technology of the very small, and merges at the nano-scale into "Nanoelectromechanical" Systems (NEMS) and Nanotechnology. MEMS are also referred to as micro machines, or Micro Systems Technology (MST). MEMS are separate and distinct from the hypothetical vision of Molecular nanotechnology or Molecular Electronics. MEMS generally range in size from a...

This paper presents an approach to the design and optimization of a new type millimeter-wave micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) phase shifter, using a genetic algorithm. Initial results show that a MEMS phase shifter with 32 30μmwidth bridges spaced at 300μm (total length = 10.56mm) can achieve 120°/dB at 35GHz and 148.5°/dB at 60GHz. Further work will be done on more complicated MEMS struct...

Computer-aided design tools tailored for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are needed to enable design of complex systems with multiple energy domains. In an analogy to the VLSI design methodology, physical, structural, and behavioral views of MEMS can be formed and coupled together in an integrated toolset. Of key importance is the formation of parameterized MEMS component libraries to sup...

MEMS optical switch technology is one of the key technologies in Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) optical networks. Although the 2-D MEMS optical switch technology is mature, the commonly used crossbar architecture is not amenable to building large switches. In this paper, we propose a design of 2 × 2 switching modules, and use it to build large 2-D MEMS optical switches with architecture...

A circuit-level methodology for top-down hierarchical design and nodal simulation of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) is presented. An abstract layout view is introduced as a geometrically intuitive MEMS representation that is transformed into a schematic suitable for behavioral simulation. Suspended-MEMS inertial sensors, resonant actuators and filters are designed using a small set of ge...

This newly formed center is part of an overall set of centers on MEMS/NEMS fundamentals supported by DARPA. The MITOSU-HP Focus Center aims to develop new methods for fabrication of MEMS and NEMS that do not use conventional lithographic methods. The Center leverages the leading expertise of MIT and OSU in MEMS and printed devices, with the printing expertise of HP. The focus center is organize...

We have developed low-loss MEMS switches for 70-120 GHz applications. The MEMS switches are integrated on a high-resistivity silicon substrate, and are built in a coplanar-waveguide configuration. The MEMS switches are fabricated using a thin gold bridge, suspended 1.5-2.5 um above the center conductor of the cpw line. The MEMS bridge is 250 um long with a width of 2540 um, depending in the hei...

PURPOSE Glaucoma medications can improve clinical outcomes when patients adhere to their medication regimen. Providers often ask patients with glaucoma to self-report their adherence, but the accuracy of self-reporting has received little scientific attention. The purpose of this article was to compare a self-reported medication adherence measure with adherence data collected from Medication Ev...