Study of MEM Relay Contact Design and Body-Bias Effects on on-State Resistance Stability

Body-biased micro-electro-mechanical (MEM) relays previously have been demonstrated to be a promising alternative to transistors for ultra-low voltage digital logic applications. A basic requirement for reliable relay-based circuit operation is suitably low and stable relay ON-state resistance (RON). In this work, the effect of body biasing on RON is investigated for relays of different contact designs. It is found that a single direct contact design not only provides for the smallest hysteresis voltage but also the smallest RON, making it the most suitable for low voltage applications. Body-biased operation is found to degrade RON stability over many ON/OFF switching cycles, however, due to a reduction in contact velocity.