Nanotechnology Now

Our NanoNews Digest Sponsors
Heifer International



Home > Press > First Capacitive Transducer with 13nm Gap

Abstract:
Fabrication of sub-30nm gap for capacitive transducers seemed impossible, until recently. Researchers at UC Berkeley successfully demonstrated a 13nm-gap capacitive resonator, which will improve sensor and resonator performance by orders of magnitude.

First Capacitive Transducer with 13nm Gap

Berkeley, CA | Posted on July 27th, 2017

Capacitive-gap transduced resonators are well known to provide high on-chip quality factors (Q), with values reaching 150,000 at VHF and 40,000 at 3GHz. Q’s this high enable 0.1% bandwidth channel-select filters with low insertion loss and high rejection for ultra-low power transceivers. At HF (from 3-30MHz), capacitive-gap transduced resonators also post strong electromechanical coupling, as gauged by (Cx/Co), up to 30%, which outperforms all other technologies. However, application of these transducers as the main filters of the smartphone (with market value more than $10b) requires strong electromechanical coupling at gigahertz frequencies. To achieve such a high coupling, transducers need to have gap spacing as small as 20 nanometers or less.
Researchers at University of California Berkeley demonstrated electrode-to-resonator gaps as small as 13.2nm achieved on a 59.5-MHz capacitive-gap transduced disk resonator which enabled a measured electromechanical coupling strength Cx/Co greater than 1.62% at a bias voltage of only 5.5V, which exceeds that of any competing technology, macro or micro, capacitive or piezoelectric, at similar VHF frequencies, all while retaining an unloaded quality factor Q of 29,640. Several key discoveries contribute to this successful demonstration, which include a novel polysilicon etch recipe that enables considerably smoother etch sidewalls than previously achievable, allowing more uniform sidewall sacrificial layer deposition and preventing structure pull-in by removing disparities and their associated strong electric fields. The implementation of small gap has improved the electromechanical coupling by more than 10x compared to previous resonators and its figure-of-merit measured as kt
2Q=576.2 holds the world’s record. This combination of high Cx/Co and Q, which has long been a primary driver for RF MEMS research, stands to not only cut VHF low noise oscillator power consumption to sub-µW levels, but now creates opportunities to apply MEMS resonator technology to the highly profitable and lucrative RF filter market for smartphones.

####

For more information, please click here

Contacts:
Jalal Naghsh Nilchi
Phone: 510-918-4346
Fax:
E-mail:

Copyright © University of California Berkeley

If you have a comment, please Contact us.

Issuers of news releases, not 7th Wave, Inc. or Nanotechnology Now, are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.

Bookmark:
Delicious Digg Newsvine Google Yahoo Reddit Magnoliacom Furl Facebook

Related News Press

News and information

Researchers develop artificial building blocks of life March 8th, 2024

How surface roughness influences the adhesion of soft materials: Research team discovers universal mechanism that leads to adhesion hysteresis in soft materials March 8th, 2024

Two-dimensional bimetallic selenium-containing metal-organic frameworks and their calcinated derivatives as electrocatalysts for overall water splitting March 8th, 2024

Curcumin nanoemulsion is tested for treatment of intestinal inflammation: A formulation developed by Brazilian researchers proved effective in tests involving mice March 8th, 2024

Hardware

The present and future of computing get a boost from new research July 21st, 2023

A Carbon Nanotube Microprocessor Mature Enough to Say Hello: Three new breakthroughs make commercial nanotube processors possible March 2nd, 2020

Powering the future: Smallest all-digital circuit opens doors to 5 nm next-gen semiconductor February 11th, 2020

SUNY Poly Professor Partners with Leading Institutions on NSF Award for Quantum Information Science Research: SUNY Poly Research Builds Upon Recent Quantum-related Research Initiatives and Workshops January 27th, 2020

MEMS

Bosch launches longevity program for industrial and IoT applications: High-performance accelerometer, IMU and pressure sensor with 10-year availability July 23rd, 2020

CEA-Leti Develops Tiny Photoacoustic-Spectroscopy System For Detecting Chemicals & Gases: Paper at Photonics West to Present Detector that Could Cost 10x Less Than Existing Systems and Prompt Widespread Use of the Technology February 4th, 2020

MEMS & Sensors Executive Congress Technology Showcase Finalists Highlight Innovations in Automotive, Biomedical and Consumer Electronics: MSIG MEMS & Sensors Executive Congress – October 22-24, 2019, Coronado, Calif. October 1st, 2019

ULVAC Launches Revolutionary PZT Piezoelectric Thin-film Process Technology and HVM Solution for MEMS Sensors/Actuators: Enabling Reliable, High-quality Film Production for Next Generation Devices August 16th, 2019

Chip Technology

New chip opens door to AI computing at light speed February 16th, 2024

HKUST researchers develop new integration technique for efficient coupling of III-V and silicon February 16th, 2024

Electrons screen against conductivity-killer in organic semiconductors: The discovery is the first step towards creating effective organic semiconductors, which use significantly less water and energy, and produce far less waste than their inorganic counterparts February 16th, 2024

NRL discovers two-dimensional waveguides February 16th, 2024

Discoveries

What heat can tell us about battery chemistry: using the Peltier effect to study lithium-ion cells March 8th, 2024

Researchers’ approach may protect quantum computers from attacks March 8th, 2024

High-tech 'paint' could spare patients repeated surgeries March 8th, 2024

Nanoscale CL thermometry with lanthanide-doped heavy-metal oxide in TEM March 8th, 2024

Announcements

What heat can tell us about battery chemistry: using the Peltier effect to study lithium-ion cells March 8th, 2024

Curcumin nanoemulsion is tested for treatment of intestinal inflammation: A formulation developed by Brazilian researchers proved effective in tests involving mice March 8th, 2024

The Access to Advanced Health Institute receives up to $12.7 million to develop novel nanoalum adjuvant formulation for better protection against tuberculosis and pandemic influenza March 8th, 2024

Nanoscale CL thermometry with lanthanide-doped heavy-metal oxide in TEM March 8th, 2024

Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters

Researchers develop artificial building blocks of life March 8th, 2024

How surface roughness influences the adhesion of soft materials: Research team discovers universal mechanism that leads to adhesion hysteresis in soft materials March 8th, 2024

Curcumin nanoemulsion is tested for treatment of intestinal inflammation: A formulation developed by Brazilian researchers proved effective in tests involving mice March 8th, 2024

Nanoscale CL thermometry with lanthanide-doped heavy-metal oxide in TEM March 8th, 2024

NanoNews-Digest
The latest news from around the world, FREE




  Premium Products
NanoNews-Custom
Only the news you want to read!
 Learn More
NanoStrategies
Full-service, expert consulting
 Learn More











ASP
Nanotechnology Now Featured Books




NNN

The Hunger Project