Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "A:Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 November 2018) | Viewed by 42255

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Associate Vice President for General AffairsDepartment of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Interests: digital microfluidics; intelligent gas sensing system; in vitro fertilization on a chip; and tera hertz system and its applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Advanced Science and Technology, Toyota Technological Institute, Nagoya 468-8511, Japan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications, University of New South Wales, Kensington, Australia

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The 13th International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered and Molecular Systems (NEMS) will be held 22–26 April, 2018, at the Grand Hyatt, Singapore. NEMS is a premier conference series sponsored by the IEEE Nanotechnology Council, focusing on the promotion of advanced research areas related to MEMS, nanotechnology, and molecular technology. Prior conferences were held in Los Angeles (USA, 2017), Matsushima Bay and Sendai (Japan, 2016), Xian (China, 2015), Hawaii (USA, 2014), Suzhou (China, 2013), Kyoto (Japan, 2012), Kaohsiung (Taiwan, 2011), Xiamen (China, 2010), Shenzhen (China, 2009), Hainan Island (China, 2008), Bangkok (Thailand, 2007), and Zhuhai (China, 2006). The IEEE-NEMS Conference typically attracts over 700 attendees, with participants from more than 20 countries and regions worldwide.

Micromachines is the leading journal in the MEMS and NENS fields. We want to consolidate original research papers and comprehensive review articles in this Special Issue. We welcome manuscripts on the following topics:

  • Micro/Nanomachines
  • Optical MEMS and Nanophotonics
  • RF MEMS, Resonators and Oscillators
  • Ultrasound MEMS (pMUT and cMUT)
  • Energy Harvesting Technology
  • BioMEMS and Biomedical Devices
  • Neuroprosthetics and Implanted Devices
  • Micro/Nanofluidics
  • Soft materials and robotics
  • Chemical Sensors/Gas Sensors/Sensors for environmental Monitoring
  • Sensor Network/IoT

Prof. Dr. Chengkuo Lee
Prof. Dr. Da-Jeng Yao
Prof. Dr. Minoru Sasaki
Prof. Dr. Aron Michael
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Related Special Issues

Published Papers (10 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

15 pages, 5141 KiB  
Article
The Research on Actuation Performance of MEMS Safety-and-Arming Device with Interlock Mechanism
by Tengjiang Hu, Wei Ren, Yulong Zhao and Yan Xue
Micromachines 2019, 10(2), 76; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10020076 - 22 Jan 2019
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4036
Abstract
Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) safety-and-arming (S&A) device shows great potential in munition miniaturization, and it can be seen as the symbol of the fourth generation of weapons systems. In this paper, the design, fabrication, and actuation performance of a silicon based S&A device is [...] Read more.
Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) safety-and-arming (S&A) device shows great potential in munition miniaturization, and it can be seen as the symbol of the fourth generation of weapons systems. In this paper, the design, fabrication, and actuation performance of a silicon based S&A device is presented. It is a multilayer stacked device, which is composed of the cover plate, the actuation chip, and the barrel plate. The electro-thermal principle is investigated in MEMS scale. With 11 V driving voltages, the structure of V-shape actuator, pawl, and slider can generate 100 μm and 45 μm displacement, and realize pulling, disengaging, and reengaging to change the device from the safety position into armed position smoothly (550 μm displacement). The rack and interlock mechanism formed by the pawl and slider gives the device the features of linear output displacement, low power consumption, input signal recognition, and sustained displacement. The 20,000 g setback acceleration is applied, and no structure damage can be found after the impact, which indicates the good anti-load ability of the MEMS S&A device. In order to solve the contradiction between the functional structure and the fabrication process, different structures are designed separately on different wafers. Both silicon and SOI wafers are used in the fabrication process, and the S&A device has been minimized into 8.5 mm × 8.5 mm × 0.8 mm successfully. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

8 pages, 3224 KiB  
Article
Respiratory Motion Sensor Measuring Capacitance Constructed across Skin in Daily Activities
by Makie Terazawa, Momoko Karita, Shinya Kumagai and Minoru Sasaki
Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 543; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110543 - 24 Oct 2018
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3010
Abstract
In this work, a respiratory sensor is studied, measuring the capacitance constructed by attached electrodes on the abdomen. Based on previous findings, that skin thickness changes caused by respiration provides the signal, the fitting condition of the electrode on the skin is stabilized [...] Read more.
In this work, a respiratory sensor is studied, measuring the capacitance constructed by attached electrodes on the abdomen. Based on previous findings, that skin thickness changes caused by respiration provides the signal, the fitting condition of the electrode on the skin is stabilized using a 7-μm-thick dressing film. This film can be comfortably worn for a long time, while maintaining the electrode’s position on the skin. This stabilized setup enables the detection of, not only respiration, as the cyclic capacitance change, but also of minute body volume changes over the daytime, as a change in the base line indicates the quality of the sensor signal. For this demonstration, the respiration signal is measured during the daily activity of exercise and 6-min walks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

8 pages, 2207 KiB  
Article
Electrohydrodynamic Direct-Writing Micropatterns with Assisted Airflow
by Jiaxin Jiang, Xiang Wang, Wenwang Li, Juan Liu, Yifang Liu and Gaofeng Zheng
Micromachines 2018, 9(9), 456; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9090456 - 11 Sep 2018
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4509
Abstract
Electrohydrodynamic direct-writing (EDW) is a developing technology for high-resolution printing. How to decrease the line width and improve the deposition accuracy of direct-written patterns has been the key to the promotion for the further application of EDW. In this paper, an airflow-assisted spinneret [...] Read more.
Electrohydrodynamic direct-writing (EDW) is a developing technology for high-resolution printing. How to decrease the line width and improve the deposition accuracy of direct-written patterns has been the key to the promotion for the further application of EDW. In this paper, an airflow-assisted spinneret for electrohydrodynamic direct-writing was designed. An assisted laminar airflow was introduced to the EDW process, which provided an additional stretching and constraining force on the jet to reduce the surrounding interferences and enhance jet stability. The flow field and the electric field around the spinneret were simulated to direct the structure design of the airflow-assisted spinneret. Then, a series of experiments were conducted, and the results verified the spinneret design and demonstrated a stable ejection of jet in the EDW process. With assisted airflow, the uniformity of printed patterns and the deposition position accuracy of a charged jet can be improved. Complex patterns with positioning errors of less than 5% have been printed and characterized, which provide an effective way to promote the integration of micro/nanosystems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 1460 KiB  
Article
Characterization and Integration of Terahertz Technology within Microfluidic Platforms
by Salman Alfihed, Mark H. Bergen, Antonia Ciocoiu, Jonathan F. Holzman and Ian G. Foulds
Micromachines 2018, 9(9), 453; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9090453 - 11 Sep 2018
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 5592
Abstract
In this work, the prospects of integrating terahertz (THz) time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) within polymer-based microfluidic platforms are investigated. The work considers platforms based upon the polar polymers polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and the nonpolar polymers fluorinated ethylene propylene [...] Read more.
In this work, the prospects of integrating terahertz (THz) time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) within polymer-based microfluidic platforms are investigated. The work considers platforms based upon the polar polymers polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and the nonpolar polymers fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), polystyrene (PS), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). The THz absorption coefficients for these polymers are measured. Two microfluidic platforms are then designed, fabricated, and tested, with one being based upon PET, as a representative high-loss polar polymer, and one being based upon UHMWPE, as a representative low-loss nonpolar polymer. It is shown that the UHMWPE microfluidic platform yields reliable measurements of THz absorption coefficients up to a frequency of 1.75 THz, in contrast to the PET microfluidic platform, which functions only up to 1.38 THz. The distinction seen here is attributed to the differing levels of THz absorption and the manifestation of differing f for the systems. Such findings can play an important role in the future integration of THz technology and polymer-based microfluidic systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 3682 KiB  
Article
Electrospun Three-Dimensional Nanofibrous Structure via Probe Arrays Inducing
by Yifang Liu, Ruimin Liu, Xiang Wang, Jiaxin Jiang, Wenwang Li, Juan Liu, Shumin Guo and Gaofeng Zheng
Micromachines 2018, 9(9), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9090427 - 24 Aug 2018
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3407
Abstract
The fast and precise direct-printing of micro three-dimensional (3D) structures is the important development trend for micro/nano fabrication technique. A novel method with probe arrays was built up to realize the controllable deposition of 3D electrospun nanofibrous structures. Firstly, several 3D nanofibrous structures [...] Read more.
The fast and precise direct-printing of micro three-dimensional (3D) structures is the important development trend for micro/nano fabrication technique. A novel method with probe arrays was built up to realize the controllable deposition of 3D electrospun nanofibrous structures. Firstly, several 3D nanofibrous structures were built on a single probe and 2-, 3-probes, which indicated that the probe height and probe interval played a key role on the 3D structure morphology. Then, different stereo nanofibrous structures based on multiprobe arrays were achieved accurately and the effects of processing parameters, including the probe height, probe interval, applied voltage and flow rate on the deposition behaviors of electrospun nanofiber over the probe arrays were investigated. The deposition area of 3D electrospun nanofibrous structures decreased with the increase of probe interval, applied voltage, and flow rate. Several 3D nanofibrous structures of special shapes including convex, triangle wave, inverted cone and complex curved surface were demonstrated by controlling the configuration of probe arrays and electrospinning parameters. This work provides an effective and simple way for the construction of 3D electrospun nanofibrous structures, which has great potentials in various medical and industrial applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

11 pages, 4441 KiB  
Article
Detection of Particulate Matter of Size 2.5 μm with a Surface-Acoustic-Wave Sensor Combined with a Cyclone Separator
by Fung-Yu Kuo, Ying-Chen Lin, Ling-Yi Ke, Chuen-Jinn Tsai and Da-Jeng Yao
Micromachines 2018, 9(8), 398; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9080398 - 12 Aug 2018
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4603
Abstract
A device to monitor particulate matter of size 2.5 μm (PM2.5) that has been designed and developed includes a surface-acoustic-wave sensor operating in a shear horizontal mode (SH-SAW) combined with a cyclone separator. In our tests, aerosols generated as incense smoke were first [...] Read more.
A device to monitor particulate matter of size 2.5 μm (PM2.5) that has been designed and developed includes a surface-acoustic-wave sensor operating in a shear horizontal mode (SH-SAW) combined with a cyclone separator. In our tests, aerosols generated as incense smoke were first separated and sampled inside a designed cyclone separator; the sampled PM2.5 was then introduced into the sensing area of an SH-SAW sensor for detection. The use of microcentrifuge tubes as a cyclone separator effectively decreases the size and power consumption of the device; the SAW sensor in a well design and operating at 122 MHz was fabricated with MEMS techniques. After an explanation of the design of the cyclone separator, a simulation of the efficiency and the SAW sensor detection are discussed. A microcentrifuge tube (volume 0.2 mL, inlet and outlet diameters 0.5 mm) as a separator has separation cutoff diameters 50% (d50) at 2.5 μm; the required rate of volumetric flow at the inlet is 0.125 LPM, according to simulation with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software; the surface-acoustic-wave (SAW) sensor exhibits sensitivity approximately 9 Hz/ng; an experiment for PM2.5 detection conducted with the combined device shows a strong positive linear correlation with a commercial aerosol monitor. The limit of detection (LOD) is 11 μg/m3 with sample time 160 s and total detection duration about 5 min. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 7949 KiB  
Article
Development of a Thermoelectric and Electromagnetic Hybrid Energy Harvester from Water Flow in an Irrigation System
by Huicong Liu, Jiankang Zhang, Qiongfeng Shi, Tianyiyi He, Tao Chen, Lining Sun, Jan A Dziuban and Chengkuo Lee
Micromachines 2018, 9(8), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9080395 - 9 Aug 2018
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5053
Abstract
A hybrid energy harvester is presented in this paper to harvest energy from water flow motion and temperature difference in an irrigating pipe at the same time. The harvester is based on the integration of thermoelectric and electromagnetic mechanisms. To harvest the water [...] Read more.
A hybrid energy harvester is presented in this paper to harvest energy from water flow motion and temperature difference in an irrigating pipe at the same time. The harvester is based on the integration of thermoelectric and electromagnetic mechanisms. To harvest the water flow motion, a turbine fan with magnets that are attached on the blades is placed inside of the water pipe. Multiple coils turn the water flow energy into electricity with the rotation of the turbine. The thermoelectric generators (TEGs) are attached around the pipe, so as to harvest energy due to temperature difference. For a maximum temperature difference of 55 °C (hot side 80 °C and room temperature 25 °C), twelve serial-connected TEGs can generate voltage up to 0.346 V. Under a load resistance of 20 Ώ, the power output of 1.264 mW can be achieved. For a maximum water flow rate of 49.9 L/min, the electromagnetic generator (EMG) can produce an open circuit voltage of 0.911 V. The EMG can be potentially used as a water flow meter due to the linear relationship between water flow rate and output voltage. Under the joint action of TEG and EMG, the maximum terminal voltage for TEG is 66 mV and for EMG is 241 mV at load resistances of 10 and 100 Ώ, respectively, resulting in a corresponding power output of 0.435 and 0.584 mW. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

22 pages, 6120 KiB  
Article
Random Error Analysis of MEMS Gyroscope Based on an Improved DAVAR Algorithm
by Jinlong Song, Zhiyong Shi, Lvhua Wang and Hailiang Wang
Micromachines 2018, 9(8), 373; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9080373 - 27 Jul 2018
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3246
Abstract
In view that traditional dynamic Allan variance (DAVAR) method is difficult to make a good balance between dynamic tracking capabilities and the confidence of the estimation. And the reason is the use of a rectangular window with the fixed window length to intercept [...] Read more.
In view that traditional dynamic Allan variance (DAVAR) method is difficult to make a good balance between dynamic tracking capabilities and the confidence of the estimation. And the reason is the use of a rectangular window with the fixed window length to intercept the original signal. So an improved dynamic Allan variance method was proposed. Compared with the traditional Allan variance method, this method can adjust the window length of the rectangular window adaptively. The data in the beginning and terminal interval was extended with the inverted mirror extension method to improve the utilization rate of the interval data. And the sliding kurtosis contribution coefficient and kurtosis were introduced to adjust the length of the rectangular window by sensing the content of shock signal in terminal interval. The method analyzed the window length change factor in different stable conditions and adjusted the rectangular window’s window length according to the kurtosis, sliding kurtosis contribution coefficient. The test results show that the more the kurtosis stability threshold was close to 3, the stronger the dynamic tracking ability of DAVAR would be. But the kurtosis stability threshold was too close to 3, there was a misjudgement in kurtosis analysis of signal stability, resulting in distortion of DAVAR analysis results. When using the improved DAVAR method, the kurtosis stability threshold can be close to 3 to improve the tracking ability and the estimation confidence in stable interval. Therefore, it solved the problem that the dynamic Allan variance tracking ability and confidence level were difficult to take into account, and also solved the problem of misjudgement in the stability analysis of kurtosis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 4688 KiB  
Article
A Study on Microturning with Electrochemical Assistance of the Cutting Process
by Marcin Grabowski, Sebastian Skoczypiec and Dominik Wyszynski
Micromachines 2018, 9(7), 357; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9070357 - 19 Jul 2018
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3184
Abstract
The paper investigated an electrochemically-assisted microturning process. Depending on the variant of electrochemical assistance, material can be removed with simultaneous electrochemical and mechanical action or electrochemical assistance can change the conditions of the cutting by changing the mechanical properties of the machined material. [...] Read more.
The paper investigated an electrochemically-assisted microturning process. Depending on the variant of electrochemical assistance, material can be removed with simultaneous electrochemical and mechanical action or electrochemical assistance can change the conditions of the cutting by changing the mechanical properties of the machined material. The experimental part includes discussion of the study methodology and a comparison of straight turning results in the case of machining 1.4301 stainless steel with and without electrochemical assistance. Based on this study, we can confirm that electrochemical assistance brings significant benefits in both variants, especially when the depth-of-cut is in the range of 1 µm. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 3076 KiB  
Article
Improved Virtual Gyroscope Technology Based on the ARMA Model
by Jinlong Song, Zhiyong Shi, Lvhua Wang and Hailiang Wang
Micromachines 2018, 9(7), 348; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9070348 - 11 Jul 2018
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4103
Abstract
In view of the large output noise and low precision of the Micro-electro-mechanical Systems (MEMS) gyroscope, the virtual gyroscope technology was used to fuse the data of the MEMS gyroscope to improve its output precision. Random error model in the conventional virtual gyroscopes [...] Read more.
In view of the large output noise and low precision of the Micro-electro-mechanical Systems (MEMS) gyroscope, the virtual gyroscope technology was used to fuse the data of the MEMS gyroscope to improve its output precision. Random error model in the conventional virtual gyroscopes contained an angular rate random walk and angle random walk ignoring other noise items and the virtual gyroscope technology can not compensate all random errors of MEMS gyroscope. So, the improved virtual gyroscope technology based on the autoregressive moving average (ARMA) model was proposed. First, the conventional virtual gyroscope technology was used to model the random error of three MEMS gyroscopes, and the data fusion was carried out by a Kalman filter to get the output of the virtual gyroscope. After that, the ARMA model was used to model the output of the virtual gyroscope, the random error model was improved with the ARMA model, and the Kalman filter was designed based on the improved random error model for data fusion of the MEMS gyroscopes. The experimental results showed that the 1σ standard deviation of the output of the virtual gyroscope based on the ARMA model was 1.4 times lower than that of the conventional virtual gyroscope output. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced MEMS/NEMS Technology)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop