Synthesis of electrostatically actuated optical micromirrors

Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) or Micro System Technology (MST) has gained a lot of focus in recent years from technologists, as it has evolved as a promising technology having applications in diverse fields such as telecommunications and medicine. Synthesis of one of the micro devices namely, the torsional micromirror that falls under the sub-category of Micro Opto Electro Mechanical Systems (MOEMS) is studied in this thesis. Synthesis involves the comprehensive design, fabrication of micromirrors validated with testing in the present work. The synthesis is carried out in the presence of electrostatic effects on micromirrors. In the present work the effect of main and counter electrostatic fields on 90{493} and one dimensional scanning micromirrors are analyzed. In the case of 90{493} mirror, a stopper is introduced whose electrostatic field improves the tilting angle by increasing the net electrostatic force acting on the micromirror. (Abstract shortened by UMI.