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Towards A High Bias Voltage Mems Filter Using Electrostatic Levitation, Mark Pallay, Ronald Miles, Shahrzad Towfighian

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Scholarship

Traditional MEMS filters use a comb drive structure that suffers from the pull- in instability, which places a significant limitation on the achievable signal-to- noise ration of the sensor. Because the output signal from a capacitive sensor

is linearly related to the applied voltage, it is desirable to use a capacitive sensor that can withstand large voltages upwards of 100V. However, the pull-in instability causes high voltages to destroy the device and a trade-off between performance and reliability must be made. Electrostatic levitation, which works by pulling electrodes apart instead of together, eliminates the pull-in instability and allows for very …