A single-axis area changeable capacitive accelerometer with folded springs

A single-axis area changeable capacitive accelerometer with folded springs is reported in this paper. The accelerometer is made up of upper and lower electrodes, working as a parallel plate capacitance, with folded springs on the upper electrode. The output signals of this device are linear. Analyzed by the ANSYS, it shows the design of the accelerometer is feasible. We have fabricated the upper electrode with folded springs using the inductively couple plasma (ICP) and the lower electrode by coating an Al layer on the SiO₂.