Thermal actuation of high frequency micromechanical resonators

This paper demonstrates the possibility of thermally actuating high-frequency micromechanical resonators. A single-mask fabrication process was used to fabricate high frequency single crystal silicon resonators on SOI substrates. The resonators where operated in a one-port configuration with parts of the resonator structure performing both thermal actuation and piezo-resistive sensing. Quality factors as high as 63,800 and resonance frequencies as high as 5.1 MHz have been demonstrated. It is shown theoretically and experimentally that thermal actuation is a more suitable approach for higher frequency resonators with dimensions in the lower microns and nanometer range.