Abstract:
Micro electromechanical systems
(MEMS) are micrometer-scale devices
that integrate electrical and mechanical elements.
They have been used in diverse applications, from display technologies
to sensor systems
to optical networks. MEMS are attractive for many applications because of their small
size and weight, which allow systems to be miniaturized.
To further explore the challenges
and opportunities of MEMS, this article describes
some fundamental technologies associated with MEMS design and operation. First,
the
advantages and challenges of MEMS are discussed.
Then manufacturing processes
are presented, followed by the methods used to generate micro-scale forces and motions. Finally, several example MEMS applications are highlighted.
The microelectronics
of
a MEMS are very similar to chips as
we think of them today.
The microelectronics act as the "brain" of the system.
It receives data, processes it, and makes decisions. The data received comes from the
microsensors in the MEMS.
MicroSensors
The microsensors act as the arms, eyes, nose, etc. They constantly gather data from the
surrounding environment and pass
this information on to the microelectronics for processing.
These sensors
can
monitor mechanical, thermal, biological, chemical, optical and magnetic readings from the surrounding environment.
MicroActuators
A microactuator acts as
a switch or a trigger to activate an external device. As
the
microelectronics is processing the data received from the microsensors, it is making
decisions on what to do based on this
data. Sometimes
the decision will involve activating an external device. If this
decision is
reached, the micrelectronics
will tell the microactuator to activate this
device.
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