Fabrication and micromechanical characterization of polycrystalline diamond microcantilevers

The exceptional chemical, mechanical and thermal properties of diamond make this material the ideal choice for resonant MEMS. Cantilevers designed for biochemical applications have been fabricated using CVD diamond. In this work, the mechanical properties of these cantilevers were investigated by two different techniques: bending test using a Contact Surface Profilometer and resonant test, using a Laser Doppler Vibrometer. The Young's Modulus mean value of polycrystalline diamond cantilever was estimated from these tests at 950-1100GPa.