Electrostatic Silicon Microgripper with Low Voltage of Actuation

In this paper we present design considerations and results of experiments conducted in order to lower maximum driving voltage of a silicon microgripper´s comb-drive actuator. Several different designs have been created, structures were fabricated and tested. We were able to decrease initial 60 V driving voltage of previous designs to levels of 9 V and 7 V with an operating range (gripper tips distance) of 75 mum. The created structures reveal to be fully functional, which has been proved through grasping and manipulation tests.