Title :
Magnetic actuation of hinged microstructures
Author :
Yi, Yong W. ; Liu, Chang
Author_Institution :
Microelectron. Lab., Illinois Univ., Urbana, IL, USA
fDate :
3/1/1999 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
We have investigated magnetic actuation of hinged, surface micromachined structures. Electroplated magnetic material (Permalloy) is integrated with two types of hinged microstructures and the magnetic actuation process has been experimentally characterized. Under a given external magnetic field, the angular displacement of a hinged structure is determined by the volume of the magnetic material or by the stiffness of an auxiliary flexural loading spring. We have demonstrated parallel actuation of large arrays of hinged microstructures under a global (wafer scale) external magnetic field. The design rules for achieving a prescribed asynchronous actuation sequence among a group of microstructures have been determined to enable efficient parallel assembly of three-dimensional (3-D) microstructures
Keywords :
Permalloy; electromagnetic actuators; microactuators; micromachining; 3D microstructures; Permalloy; angular displacement; asynchronous actuation sequence; auxiliary flexural loading spring; hinged microstructures; magnetic actuation; magnetic actuation process; parallel actuation; stiffness; surface micromachined structures; wafer scale external magnetic field; Actuators; Assembly; Magnetic fields; Magnetic materials; Magnetostatics; Microstructure; Sensor arrays; Springs; Torque; Two dimensional displays;
Journal_Title :
Microelectromechanical Systems, Journal of
