Multi-physics field modeling and simulation analysis of electrothermal microactuators

To address the multi-physical field modeling and simulation of microactuators, this paper takes a dual hot-arm actuator made of polysilicon as the research object and develops a coupled thermal-structural interaction multi-physical field model based on the characteristics of thermal expansion effect. The dual hot-arm actuator couples three different physical phenomena: current conduction, heat transfer containing heat generation, and structural stress and strain caused by thermal expansion. A parametric geometric approach is applied to the object of study, which leads to the analysis of the effects of the thermal actuator when its dimensions are varied. In order to confirm the validity of the model, the in-plane motion thermal actuator is analyzed and the simulation results are validated by COMSOL.