Bistable microelectromechanical actuator
First Claim
1. A microelectromechanical (MEM) actuator, comprising:
- (a) a shaped membrane formed above a substrate, the membrane being held in compression by elongate supports attached to a pair of opposing edges of the membrane and by an elongate resilient member attached to the membrane at a midpoint thereof to provide a curvilinear cross-sectional shape for the membrane and thereby define a first mechanical state of the membrane; and
(b) electrostatic means for switching the membrane from the first mechanical state to a second mechanical state having a cross-sectional shape that is a mirror image the first mechanical state.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A bistable microelectromechanical (MEM) actuator is formed on a substrate and includes a stressed membrane of generally rectangular shape that upon release assumes a curvilinear cross-sectional shape due to attachment at a midpoint to a resilient member and at opposing edges to a pair of elongate supports. The stressed membrane can be electrostatically switched between a pair of mechanical states having mirror-image symmetry, with the MEM actuator remaining in a quiescent state after a programming voltage is removed. The bistable MEM actuator according to various embodiments of the present invention can be used to form a nonvolatile memory element, an optical modulator (with a pair of mirrors supported above the membrane and moving in synchronism as the membrane is switched), a switchable mirror (with a single mirror supported above the membrane at the midpoint thereof) and a latching relay (with a pair of contacts that open and close as the membrane is switched). Arrays of bistable MEM actuators can be formed for applications including nonvolatile memories, optical displays and optical computing.
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Citations
45 Claims
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1. A microelectromechanical (MEM) actuator, comprising:
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(a) a shaped membrane formed above a substrate, the membrane being held in compression by elongate supports attached to a pair of opposing edges of the membrane and by an elongate resilient member attached to the membrane at a midpoint thereof to provide a curvilinear cross-sectional shape for the membrane and thereby define a first mechanical state of the membrane; and (b) electrostatic means for switching the membrane from the first mechanical state to a second mechanical state having a cross-sectional shape that is a mirror image the first mechanical state. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A bistable microelectromechanical (MEM) actuator comprising:
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(a) a substrate; (b) a stressed membrane formed above the substrate, the membrane being supported at a pair of opposing edges thereof and further being supported by a resilient member below the membrane near a midpoint thereof to provide a curvilinear cross-sectional shape for the membrane to define a first mechanical state thereof; and (c) electrostatic means for switching the stressed membrane from the first mechanical state to a second mechanical state having a cross-sectional shape that is a mirror image of the first mechanical state. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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42. A method for forming a microelectromechanical (MEM) actuator, comprising steps for:
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(a) forming a resilient member and a pair of elongate supports on a substrate; (b) forming a stressed membrane having a curvilinear shape by attaching the membrane at a midpoint thereof to the resilient member and at a pair of opposing edges thereof to the elongate supports; and (c) forming a first electrode on or within the stressed membrane, and forming a second electrode spaced therefrom for electrostatically switching the membrane between a pair of mechanical states thereof. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45)
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Specification