Performance characterization of in-plane electro-thermally driven linear microactuators

Dynamic performance of a microactuator is a key factor in the functioning of an integrated microsystem composed of moving components such as optical shutter, optical switch, micropump, migrogripper, microvalve. Therefore, the design of such systems primarily focuses on the overall design and parameter optimization of an actuator as the major driving element with respect to the desired performance parameters, e.g. displacement, force, dimensional constraints, material, actuation principle and method of fabrication. This study presents results on the static (steady state) performance analysis on an in-plane electro-thermally driven linear microactuators. Each microactuator, having a width of 2220 \ub5m and made of 25 \ub5m thick nickel foil, consists of a pair of cascaded structures. Connecting several actuation units in series formed each cascaded structure. A set of microactuators with different number of actuation units was fabricated by the laser micromachining technology. The static performance of these microactuators was evaluated with respect to the maximum linear displacement and applied electric power, current, and voltage. The maximum displacements vary from 30 \ub5m to 78 \ub5m, respectively, depending on the number of actuation units. The microactuators' performance results are promising for applications in MEMS/MOEMS, microfluidic, and microrobotic devices.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye