The future of MEMS in energy technologies

Abstract

MEMS for Portable ApplicationsThe 21 st century requires innovative solutions to meet the ever increasing demand for ultra portable and highly efficient energy technologies. Micro-electro-mechanical Systems (MEMS) have shown significant promise in providing robust, low-cost transduction capabilities. MEMS sensors and actuators are ideally suited for small-scale energy harvesting and power generation applications where overall device dimensions are critical. Furthermore, MEMS technology can also be harnessed for large scale energy applications by augmenting these systems with sensing and actuation capabilities in order to improve energy efficiency and reduce costs. This paper highlights some current MEMS research for energy applications and also explores some areas of the energy industry which might benefit from integration withMEMS.

Electrothermally Actuated Silicon Carbide Tunable MEMS Resonators

“…Fig. 6 shows the measured frequency as a function of beam length L and disk diameter D. The frequency values calculated with the analytical formulas (1), (2) and (3) have been plotted for comparison.…”

“…for use in a variety of applications including telecommunications, optics, biomedicine, automotive industry [1] and challenging applications such as quantum mechanical devices [2] and energy harvesting [3]. In systems requiring timing and frequency control functions, MEMS are considered as possible solutions to overcome size reduction and power consumption issues [4], [5], [6], [7].…”

Silicon carbide electromechanical resonators

“…Moreover, as expected for comparable dimensions, the resonant frequencies measured for rings are higher than the ones obtained for cantilevers. This effect is due primarily to the intrinsic modal behaviour of circular structures described by equation (2) and also to the higher internal stress exhibited by the rings that contribute to the increase of the resonant frequency [19]. As a matter of fact, the fabricated cantilevers are relatively straight, indicating that the internal stress is relatively low.…”

“…In the last two decades, numerous MEMS devices including accelerometers, gyroscopes, micro-mirrors, switches, pressure and chemical sensors have been developed for various fields from biomedical applications to telecommunications, optics, automotive, and entertainment industry [1]. Currently, MEMS/NEMS are being considered for new and challenging applications such as alternative energy harvesting and quantum mechanical devices [2,3]. The key factors in the design of electromechanical system are the choice of the materials and transduction methods related to the application.…”