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Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales

Mechanical linkages are fundamentally important for the transfer of motion through assemblies of parts to perform work. Whereas their behavior in macroscale systems is well understood, there are open questions regarding the performance and reliability of linkages with moving parts in contact within...

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Autores principales: Copeland, Craig R., McGray, Craig D., Geist, Jon, Aksyuk, Vladimir A., Stavis, Samuel M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Nature Publishing Group 2016
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5103322/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27840694
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/micronano.2016.55
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author Copeland, Craig R.
McGray, Craig D.
Geist, Jon
Aksyuk, Vladimir A.
Stavis, Samuel M.
author_facet Copeland, Craig R.
McGray, Craig D.
Geist, Jon
Aksyuk, Vladimir A.
Stavis, Samuel M.
author_sort Copeland, Craig R.
collection PubMed
description Mechanical linkages are fundamentally important for the transfer of motion through assemblies of parts to perform work. Whereas their behavior in macroscale systems is well understood, there are open questions regarding the performance and reliability of linkages with moving parts in contact within microscale systems. Measurement challenges impede experimental studies to answer such questions. In this study, we develop a novel combination of optical microscopy methods that enable the first quantitative measurements at nanometer and microradian scales of the transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage. We track surface features and fluorescent nanoparticles as optical indicators of the motion of the underlying parts of the microsystem. Empirical models allow precise characterization of the electrothermal actuation of the linkage. The transfer of motion between translating and rotating links can be nearly ideal, depending on the operating conditions. The coupling and decoupling of the links agree with an ideal kinematic model to within approximately 5%, and the rotational output is perfectly repeatable to within approximately 20 microradians. However, stiction can result in nonideal kinematics, and input noise on the scale of a few millivolts produces an asymmetric interaction of electrical noise and mechanical play that results in the nondeterministic transfer of motion. Our study establishes a new approach towards testing the performance and reliability of the transfer of motion through assemblies of microscale parts, opening the door to future studies of complex microsystems.
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spelling pubmed-51033222016-11-10 Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales Copeland, Craig R. McGray, Craig D. Geist, Jon Aksyuk, Vladimir A. Stavis, Samuel M. Microsyst Nanoeng Article Mechanical linkages are fundamentally important for the transfer of motion through assemblies of parts to perform work. Whereas their behavior in macroscale systems is well understood, there are open questions regarding the performance and reliability of linkages with moving parts in contact within microscale systems. Measurement challenges impede experimental studies to answer such questions. In this study, we develop a novel combination of optical microscopy methods that enable the first quantitative measurements at nanometer and microradian scales of the transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage. We track surface features and fluorescent nanoparticles as optical indicators of the motion of the underlying parts of the microsystem. Empirical models allow precise characterization of the electrothermal actuation of the linkage. The transfer of motion between translating and rotating links can be nearly ideal, depending on the operating conditions. The coupling and decoupling of the links agree with an ideal kinematic model to within approximately 5%, and the rotational output is perfectly repeatable to within approximately 20 microradians. However, stiction can result in nonideal kinematics, and input noise on the scale of a few millivolts produces an asymmetric interaction of electrical noise and mechanical play that results in the nondeterministic transfer of motion. Our study establishes a new approach towards testing the performance and reliability of the transfer of motion through assemblies of microscale parts, opening the door to future studies of complex microsystems. Nature Publishing Group 2016-09-12 /pmc/articles/PMC5103322/ /pubmed/27840694 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/micronano.2016.55 Text en Copyright © 2016 The Author(s) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
spellingShingle Article
Copeland, Craig R.
McGray, Craig D.
Geist, Jon
Aksyuk, Vladimir A.
Stavis, Samuel M.
Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title_full Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title_fullStr Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title_full_unstemmed Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title_short Transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
title_sort transfer of motion through a microelectromechanical linkage at nanometer and microradian scales
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5103322/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27840694
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/micronano.2016.55
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