Title :
A high-current electrothermal bistable MEMS relay
Author :
Qui, J. ; Lang, Jeffrey H. ; Slocum, Alexander H. ; Strümpler, Ralf
Author_Institution :
MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
Abstract :
This paper reports the design, fabrication and testing of a thermally-actuated bistable MEMS relay. Mechanical bistability ensures zero actuation power in both the on and off states, and permits actuation with a transient thermal actuator. In the off state, this relay stands off more than 200 V. In the on state, it exhibits a minimum total resistance of 60 nΩ and a maximum current carrying capacity of 3 A. It switches with a maximum 5 Hz rate.
Keywords :
microactuators; micromechanical devices; microrelays; 200 V; 3 A; 60 nohm; high-current electrothermal bistable MEMS relay; mechanical bistability; transient thermal actuator; Actuators; Contact resistance; Electrothermal effects; Etching; Fabrication; Micromechanical devices; Relays; Structural beams; Testing; Thermal force;
Conference_Titel :
Micro Electro Mechanical Systems, 2003. MEMS-03 Kyoto. IEEE The Sixteenth Annual International Conference on
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-7744-3
DOI :
10.1109/MEMSYS.2003.1189688
