DESIGN AND MODELING OF N / MEM RESONATORS

FOR BIOSENSING APPLICATIONS

A Thesis

Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

the Degree of Master of Science in the

Graduate School of Electrical Engineering Department,Faculty of

Engineering

By

Mohamed Zanaty, B.Sc.

*****

Assiut University

Thesis Advisors:
Dr. Mohamed Abbas
Dr. Harrie Tilmans
Prof. Mohamed Abdelgawad

2013

c Copyright by

Mohamed Zanaty

2013
The Thesis of Mohamed Zanaty is approved.

May 9, 2013

Assiut University

iii
 ABSTRACT

DNA electromechanical bio-sensors are promising candidates for accurate, sensi-

tive, and rapid detection of pathogenic and genetic diseases. Currently, most DNA

bio-sensors use fluorescent labels to visualize DNA binding, but they are complicated,

slow and difficult to miniaturize.

Recent technology advances in highly sensitive micro/nano transducers offer an excel-

lent opportunity for label-less bio-molecular sensing. Micro/ nano scale free standing

mechanical structures can be made to react upon analyte binding and can thus be

used for molecular detection. For instance, the mass of micro-mechanical resonators

changes upon surface grafting of biological entities of interest. The shift in mass

causes a resonance frequency variation, allowing the recognition of the desired ana-

lyte.

Considering these features of mechanical resonators, we selected two routes for im-

proving the resonator bio-performance. Firstly, we report the design, modeling and

experimental characterization of meta-material (MEMA) SiGe based bar type bulk

acoustic wave (BAW) resonator operated under ambient pressure condition. To the

best of our knowledge, it is the first time that the MEMA BAW resonator is used for

bio-molecular sensing applications. Through the implementation of square holes in

the BAW bar type resonator surface, our MeMa resonator offers an increased surface

area-to-volume ratio and lower mass. Despite its quality factor drop due to these

iv
holes, the MEMA resonator still shows a sufficiently high Q-factor for bio-sensing

applications; moreover, it retains the motional resistance of the full BAW resonator

(same footprint non-perforated bar). On the processing side, the added perforations

are expected to enhance the chance of the sensed bio-molecules to diffuse to the lower

face of the bar and more likely reduce stiction during the functionalization procedure.

Mainly, we have shown experimentally and numerically that MEMA BAW resonators

have a 5 times higher bio-sensitivity compared to the typical BAW resonators for the

same footprint area.

Secondly, technology advances enabled scaling down the dimensions of mechanical

resonator to tenths of nano-meter. Miniaturizing mechanical resonator dimensions

improves its bio-performance. However, it complicates its detection technique and

provides a higher chance for nano-forces to prevail. We report the design and mod-

eling of nano-structures with a thickness of 50 nm and a transduction gap of 50 nm.

We developed an analytical model to describe the resonator harmonic behaviour in

the presence of nonlinear electrostatic and intermolecular, represented in Casimir and

van der Waals forces. We have shown that these nano-scale forces affect the resonance

frequency, critical amplitude and energy storage capability of the resonator, proving

the importance of considering these forces within the nano-scale regime.

Finally, we present new designs of micro / nano scale resonators based on the Koch

fractal cells to further increase the resonator surface area to volume ratio. Moreover,

these designs retain a higher quality factor compared to the previously described

structures. They are currently under fabrication at imec SiGe 4um and 50 nm plat-

forms.

v
To my dear family and the soul of my grandfather

with all my love

vi
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Center of Excellence in Nano-

manufacturing Applications (CENA), Saudi Arabia, for the generous scholarship un-

der which the research reported in this thesis was conducted. CENA is a consortium

of King Abdulaziz City of Science and Technology (KACST) and Intel Corporation.

vii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv

Dedication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xii

Chapters:

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

1.1 Motivations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Thesis contributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3 Thesis outline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

2. Fundamentals of N / MEM resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.2 N / MEM resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.2.1 Flexural Based Resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.2.2 Extensional Bulk Acoustic Based Resonators . . . . . . . . 11
2.3 N / MEM Resonator Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.3.1 Mechanical Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.3.2 Electrodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.3.3 Tethers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.3.4 Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.4 Transduction mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

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 2.4.1 Capacitive Transduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.4.2 Piezo-resistive Transduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.4.3 Piezo-electric Transduction: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.4.4 Thermal Transduction: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.5 RLC equivalent circuit model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.6 Damping techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.6.1 Viscous Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.6.2 Anchor Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
2.6.3 Thermo-elastic Damping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.7 Non-linearity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
2.8 Intermolecular Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
2.9 Meta-material based BAW resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
2.10 Fabrication Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

3. Bio-sensing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.2 Types of bio-sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.2.1 Electrochemical bio-sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.2.2 Optical sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
3.2.3 Mechanical sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
3.3 Bio-sensitivity enhancement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

4. Experimental Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

4.1 Measurement setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

4.1.1 RLC extraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
4.2 Functionlization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4.3 Bio-sensitivity measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

5. Modeling and Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
5.2 Double Clamped Beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
5.2.1 Analytical model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
5.2.2 Numerical Simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
5.3 NEM resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
5.3.1 Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
5.4 Meta-material BAW resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
5.4.1 Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
5.4.2 Bio-sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
5.5 Sensing Circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

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6. Results and Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
6.2 Double Clamped Beams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
6.2.1 Analytical model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
6.3 NEM resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
6.3.1 Static Analysis and Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
6.3.2 Linear Harmonic Analysis and Response . . . . . . . . . . . 100
6.3.3 Nonlinear Harmonic Analysis and Response . . . . . . . . . 101
6.3.4 Casimir Versus van der Waals force . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
6.3.5 Study Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
6.4 Meta-material BAW resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
6.4.1 Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.4.2 Bio-sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.4.3 Experimental verification of bio-sensitivity . . . . . . . . . . 117
6.5 New Designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
6.5.1 MEM resonators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
6.5.2 NEM Designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
6.6 Sensing Circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

7. Conclusion and Future work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

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 LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

2.1 Mechanical-Electrical Analogy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

6.1 Effect of intermolecular forces on different structures. . . . . . . . . . 105

6.2 Extracted harmonic response parameters for MEM BAW bar type res-
onators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

6.3 Bio-sensitivity for MEMA resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

6.4 Surface area to volume ratio for different order of fractal cells. . . . . 119

6.5 Pad designation for DCB resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

6.6 Pad designation for the extensional bar resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . 122

6.7 Pad designation for lame mode bar resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

6.8 Aspect ratio for different transistors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

xi
 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Page

1.1 HCV infection distribution worldwide [1]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

1.2 Death rate distribution worldwide due to water contamination [2]. . . 3

2.1 The harmonic response of a mechanical resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . 8

2.2 Common configurations for flexural beam resonators. . . . . . . . . . 10

2.3 Different configurations for BAW resonators (a) Beam resonator [3] . 12

2.4 Simulated displacement of BAW bar type resonators operated in (a)

extensional mode (b) Lame mode where red and blue represent maxi-
mum and minimum displacement, respectively. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2.5 Schematic diagram for BAW bar type resonator suspended by T-support
showing its main components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

2.6 Different types of electro-mechanical transduction. . . . . . . . . . . . 19

2.7 Lumped model representation of H-shaped resonator. . . . . . . . . . 20

2.8 Electrical equivalent circuit representation for lumped MEM resonator. 20

2.9 Electrical equivalent circuit for distributed MEM resonator. . . . . . . 22

2.10 Block diagram showing the MEM resonator interaction with the sur-
rounding fluid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

2.11 Squeeze film damping for normal moving resonators. . . . . . . . . . 26

xii
2.12 Perforated beam resonator for reduced air damping. . . . . . . . . . . 27

2.13 Slide film damping for laterally moving resonators. . . . . . . . . . . 28

2.14 PML for simulating the anchor losses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

2.15 Simulated anchor limited quality factor for bar-type T supported BAW
resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

2.16 Harmonic behaviour of MEM resonator under different AC voltage

showing the instability effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

2.17 A schematic diagram for a DCB under the influence of nano-scale forces. 35

2.18 SEM image of MEMA based BAW resonator with different perforation
densities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

2.19 The cross section of the MEMS process of the 4 [um] thick SiGe platform. 38

2.20 Thick poly SiGe platform for MEMS processing (step by step). . . . . 39

2.21 The process cross section for the NEM platform (100 nm). . . . . . . 40

3.1 Schematic diagram of biosensor showing its main components. . . . . 42

3.2 Classification of the bio-sensor based on chemical detection and phys-

ical transduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

3.3 Schematic representation of calorimetric biosensor. . . . . . . . . . . . 46

3.4 Schematic diagram of the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) operation

for bio-sensing applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

3.5 Schematic representation of the operation of the optical whispering

gallery mode (WGM) resonator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

3.6 Static electro-mechanical bio-sensor(a) Functionlized cantilever with

zero displacement (z=0) and (b) Static displacement after trapping
the bio-molecules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

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3.7 Dynamic electro-mechanical bio-sensor(a) Functionlized cantilever and
(b) Resonant cantilever with added bio-molecules. . . . . . . . . . . . 52

3.8 Operation of SMR with a tube passing within the resonator. . . . . . 53

3.9 Different types of bio-sensors based on BAW resonators. . . . . . . . 54

4.1 Measurement setup for the bar resonators using the network analyzer. 58

4.2 The main parts of the system used for measuring the bar resonators. 58

4.3 Measured and fitted S21 parameters for full BAW bar type resonators. 59

4.4 Different steps for the resonator functionlization. . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

5.1 DCB resonators with 4 m thickness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

5.2 A single degree of freedom model with mass m, stiffness k and damper
c, representing an electrostatically driven resonator with a transduction
gap d0 and overlap surface area with the electrode Sa . . . . . . . . . . 72

5.3 Schematic diagram of the MEMA based BAW resonators. . . . . . . . 78

5.4 SEM image of the MEMA based BAW resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . 79

5.5 A static pull test for a unit cell of BAW bar type MEM resonator. . . 81

5.6 Bar cross section showing different air viscous damping mechanisms. . 82

5.7 COMSOL setup for the calculation of the motional resistance of MEMA
based BAW bar type resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

5.8 Equivalent circuit through which the equivalent parameters are extracted. 84

5.9 Read out circuit for MEM resonator [4]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

6.1 Effect of the beam length on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 89

6.2 Effect of the beam width on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 91

6.3 Effect of the beam thickness on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 92

xiv
6.4 Effect of the gap height on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 93

6.5 Effect of the Youngs modulus on the air viscous friction with the
resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

6.6 Effect of the beam density on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 96

6.7 Effect of the mode shape on the air viscous friction with the resonator. 97

6.8 Numerical and analytical computed quality factor and resonance fre-
quency for different modes of DCB resonators.The first column is the
resonator displacement and the second one represents the pressure dis-
tribution across the bar. The red and blue colors denote the maximum
and minimum values respectively. Tables show the match between
numerical and analytical computations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

6.9 Effect of the intermolecular forces on the pull-in parameters of NEM

resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

6.10 Effect of the spring softening effect introduced by the electrostatic

and the intermolecular forces on the resonance frequency of NEM res-
onators under linear harmonic conditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

6.11 Effect of the intermolecular spring softening effect on the resonator

critical amplitude. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

6.12 Harmonic response of NEM resonators under the influence of electro-

static and intermolecular forces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

6.13 Transition from the Casimir to the vdW force. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

6.14 Harmonic response of MEMA resonator under the influence of different

DC voltages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

6.15 Variation of the mechanical properties and resonance frequency with

the resonator effective density calculated though the static pull test. . 108

6.16 COMSOL simulation for the air velocity surrounding the MEMA based
resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

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6.17 COMSOL simulation of the air pressure along the transduction gap of
the MEMA based resonator. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

6.18 Air limited Q-factor of the meta-material based resonator versus the
perforation size with a perforation pitch of 5 m, computed numerically
and experimentally. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

6.19 Motional resistance variation versus the DC applied voltage for differ-
ent perforation densities computed experimentally and numerically. . 111

6.20 Equivalent circuit for which the equivalent parameters are extracted. 112

6.21 Harmonic response of the MEMA resonator under a DC voltage of 50

V computed numerically and experimentally. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

6.22 Bio-sensitivity variation versus the perforation density with a pitch =

2.5 m and different thickness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

6.23 FOM of MEMA resonators versus the hole size for different perforation
pitch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

6.24 FOM for different perforation pitches of MEMA BAW bar type resonator.116

6.25 Resonance frequency shift on exposure to DNA (a) Non-perforated

bars (b) Perforated bars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

6.26 Fractal unit cells used for the resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

6.27 DCB resonators with different fractal cells. The inset is a magnification
of the perforation shape on the beam. The designation of the 1,2,3 and
4 labeled structures are given in Table 6.5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

6.28 Capacitive extensional BAW resonators with different unit cells. The
inset is a magnification of the perforation shape on the beam. The
designation of the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 labeled structures are given in
Table 6.6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

6.29 Piezo-resistive bar resonators with different fractal cells. . . . . . . . . 123

6.30 Different anchoring schemes for lame mode resonators. The designation
of the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 labeled structures are given in Table 6.7 123

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6.31 Different electrode configurations for NEM cantilevers. . . . . . . . . 125

6.32 Array of fractal first order based DCB resonators. . . . . . . . . . . . 126

6.33 H-spice simulated DC transfer characteristics of the readout circuit. . 127

6.34 H-spice simulated frequency response of the full system. . . . . . . . . 127

6.35 H-spice simulated transient response of the readout circuit on driving

the resonator with a sinusoidal signal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

6.36 H-spice simulated Frequency response of readout circuit on varying the

resonator mass. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

xvii
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Motivations

Over the past decades, the Middle East region faced many life challenges on

economical, educational and political fronts. Due to the difficult economical situation

of these countries, the human capital is considered as the main source for solving

these problems. However, there are many risks threaten this important resource as

epidemic diseases, contaminated water and polluted air. The Middle East had the

highest infection rate of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in 2012, based on WHO report [1].

Figure 1.1 shows the distribution of the HCV infection across the world in 2005 [1].

It is readily seen that the infections are widely spread in the Middle East and central

Africa. HCV highly decreases the person productivity and reduce ability to perform

work. According to the Egyptian ministry of health, Egypt has around 11 million

infections increasing annually by 150 thousand cases out of 150 million infections

worldwide [5]. This represents the highest infection rate worldwide, around 15% [2].

Unfortunately, around 75-85% of the infections are developed into chronic diseases

and 60-70% of the chronically infected people develop chronic liver disease. Moreover,

5 -20% develop cirrhosis and 1-5% die from either cirrhosis or liver cancer. HCV also

lead to 25% of liver cancer cases.

1
There are several difficulties in facing the HCV. On the diagnosis level, the HCV is

often missed because the majority of the people have no symptoms. Blood analysis

is needed for HCV antibodies detection. Even though, antibody detection doesnt

differentiate between acute and chronic infections. Therefore, RNA testing is needed

to confirm the seriousness of the infection.

The HCV is most commonly transmitted through the exposure to infectious blood,

through reception of contaminated blood or injections with contaminated syringes.

Therefore, the risk of infection can be highly reduced through avoiding unsafe blood

sources and ensure using sterilized injection tools. Even, in the case of the infection,

the detection of the virus within the incubation period (6 month) highly increases the

possibility of full recovery [2].

Figure 1.1: HCV infection distribution worldwide [1].

2
 Considering the difficulty of detection and prevention of HCV, there is an urgent

need for finding a sensitive method or technique for early virus detection, selective

for the correct diagnosis of the virus, low cost and fast.

Another challenge, facing Africa, is the water pollution. The Nile river in Africa is

one of the most contaminated rivers in the world. Most of the death cases due to

contaminated water occurs in Africa as shown in Fig. 1.2 [2]. Therefore, proper bio-

detection techniques are needed for testing water quality.

Figure 1.2: Death rate distribution worldwide due to water contamination [2].

Currently, most of the bio-sensing based devices rely on on chemical reactions.

For example, lateral flow essays (LFA) offer fast (minutes) but non-sensitive detec-

tion mechanism. on the other hand, enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA)

give sensitive (down to pico-molar(pM)) concentration but long detection time (hours)

[6].

3
This thesis is concerned with the design and performance analysis of a sensitive and

fast biosensor based on mechanical nano / micro electromechanical (N / MEM) res-

onator.

1.2 Thesis contributions

We discuss in this thesis different techniques for enhancing the sensitivity of a

biosensor based on N / MEM resonator. We selected meta-material (MEMA) bar

type bulk acoustic wave (BAW) resonator as the basis for the biosensor, we took

two routes. From the design perspective, the resonator was perforated to increase its

surface area to volume ratio. Fractal based cells are also utilized within the BAW

resonator to further increase its overall surface area to volume ratio. This effort led

to sensor bio performance enhancement of 6 times than the conventional bar type

BAW resonator of the same dimensions.

The second route taken focused on improving the bio-performance of the MEM res-

onator through enhancing its electromechanical performance. This was done by lever-

aging the fabrication process technology. From that perspective, we designed and

modeled NEM resonator with a thickness of 50 nm and a transduction gap of 50 nm.

These resonators are currently under fabrication at imec. Moreover, we presented an

analytical model for estimating the effect of intermolecular forces, such as Casimir

and vdW, on the NEM based bio-sensors.

We can summarize the main contributions of this thesis as:

Designing, analytical modeling and numerical simulation of flexural MEM based

biosensor and enhancing its performance by employing fractal cells.

4
 Designing, modeling, optimizing and characterizing MEMA based BAW bar

type resonators and comparing its performance with the conventional bar type

resonator.

Designing of NEM resonators with a thickness of 50 [nm] and a vertical gap of

50 [nm] .

Analytical modeling of the impact of the intermolecular forces, represented in

Casimir and van der Waals forces, on the harmonic response of the resonator

Designing of fractal based BAW bar type resonator for biosensing applications

1.3 Thesis outline

The thesis is organized as follow. Chapter 2 includes an introduction to and an

explanation for the operation of MEM resonators. Different modeling approaches

including the equivalent circuit principle are also discussed. The different loss mecha-

nism along with a literature survey of the prior work on the modeling of these losses,

through a discussion of the intermolecular forces and their impact on the performance

of the resonator, are presented and explained. The chapter ends by introducing the

principle of the MEMA based BAW resonator.

In Chapter 3, we introduce the concept of bio-sensing and compare the different bio-

sensing techniques including the mechanical, optical and chemical. In addition, we

compare between the static and the dynamic modes of mechanical biosensor and ex-

plain the advantages of the mechanical bio-sensing approach over the other detection

techniques.

The experimental setup used for measuring the bio-sensitivity of the MEM resonator

5
is presented in Chapter 4. We also present and discuss the different steps for the

chemical functionlization process needed to make the resonator surface sensitive to

the materials being detected.

A model for the flexural resonators and an estimate for its Q-factor and resonance

frequency both analytically and numerically under ambient pressure condition, are

firstly introduced in Chapter 5. After that, we present an analytical model for the

impact of the intermolecular forces on the behaviour of the NEM resonator. Then,

a numerical model of the MEMA based BAW bar-type resonator is furnished. In

chapter 6, we present and discuss the results obtained from the application of the

previous models to N / MEM resonators. We perform a parametric study for the

effect of varying the resonator dimensions and material properties on its performance

under ambient pressure condition. Then, we present the effect of the perforation on

the mechanical properties of the bar, quality factor, bio-sensitivity and the minimum

detectable mass is presented. Moreover, the optimum hole size is determined for a

given perforation pitch. The numerical results are validated using experimental mea-

surements. Then, we introduce our new designs for both flexural and bulk BAW

resonators featuring thickness of 4 m and 50 nm. Fractal cells were used to increase

total surface area to volume ratio of the resonator. Finally, we present the simulation

for a sensing circuit to be used for our the read out section of the biosensor.

In chapter 7, we conclude the thesis work and present a prospective on future work

and expected results.

6
 CHAPTER 2

FUNDAMENTALS OF N / MEM RESONATORS

2.1 Introduction

In general, a resonator is defined as a device or a system that exhibits the reso-

nance behaviour at given input frequencies, known as resonance frequencies [7]. At

these frequencies, a maximum oscillation amplitude is developed in comparison with

other frequencies as depicted in Fig. 2.1 .The number of the resonance frequencies

depend on the system degree of freedom (DOF). The oscillation itself can be either

electromagnetic or mechanical. For this thesis, we are concerned with the micro -

electro-mechanical (MEM) resonators where resonance is purely mechanical. In such

a case, resonance depends on the resonator mass and stiffness. However, the sensing

and the actuation are performed through the electrical signals enabling the resonator

integration with electronic circuits. The performance of different MEM resonator is

defined through the following parameters:

Resonance Frequency(fres ): As mentioned earlier, it is the frequency (a

single frequency) at which maximum oscillation amplitude is achieved. It is

defined as the square root of the mass to the stiffness ratio as shown by Eq.

(2.1). It depends on the resonator material, shape and dimensions. The higher

7
 Figure 2.1: The harmonic response of a mechanical resonator.

the DOFs are, the more resonance frequencies exist [7].

r
1 k
fres = (2.1)
2 m

Quality factor (Q-factor):It defines the band of frequencies around the res-

onance frequency at which a maximum oscillation amplitude is expected. In

other words, it defines the sharpness of the resonance peak, given in Fig. 2.1.

The sharper the peak is, the higher the quality factor. Q-factor is an important

parameter as it defines the selectivity of the resonator, higher Q-factor res-

onators have a higher sensitivity and lower phase noise. Q-factor is the energy

stored within the resonator divided by the energy dissipated within one cycle [8]

as given in Eq. (2.2). Various losses mechanisms limit the resonator Q-factor

such as the anchor losses, viscous damping and material losses [9]. These losses

will be discussed in more details in section 2.6. For sensitive mechanical based

8
 bio-sensor, high Q-factor is needed.

1 Energy stored
Q= (2.2)
2 Energy loss per cycle

Motional Resistance(Rmotinal )They determine the resonator displacement at

the resonance. The lower the motional resistance, the higher the resonance

peak is. A low motional resistance resonator can be easily identified due to its

high displacement at a given voltage. For bio-sensing, low motional resistance

is desired. The motional resistance depends on resonator material, dimensions,

mechanical losses and the applied electrical signals used for actuation.

Linearity: A resonator operation is usually restricted to a certain range of vi-

bration amplitudes. Beyond this range, the harmonic behaviour of the resonator

become distorted and out of range signals will be generated. For biosensor, the

wider the linear region is, the more dynamic range the resonator will have [10].

This non-linearity originates from material or electrical non-linearity as in the

case of the parallel plate resonator [11]. More details of the main limits of the

resonator linearity will be discussed in section 2.7.

2.2 N / MEM resonators

2.2.1 Flexural Based Resonators

These resonators are mostly beams with rectangular cross section, as illustrated

in Fig. 2.2. The resonator is actuated by applying a force on the lower face of the

beam. Such force results in a bending motion. The most common configuration of

these resonators are clamped free ( cantilevers ) and DCBs. A third configuration is

the free - free beam where the beam is fixed by torsional tethers at the nodal points.

9
 Figure 2.2: Common configurations for flexural beam resonators.

In general, the aforementioned resonators posses a low Q-factor. Therefore, they are

replaced by bulk resonators in many applications. However, such resonators are still

popular in bio-sensing applications due to their lower mass and lower motional resis-

tance [6]. The resonance frequency of flexural resonators depends on its length (l),

thickness(t) and material( Youngs modulusE and density ) as given in the following

equations where I is the moment of inertia (I = 1/12wt3 ) [8]:

s
n2 EI
fn,res = (2.3)
l2 A

n is a mode constant that can be determined by solving the following equations

cos(n )cosh(n ) = 1 and cos(n )cosh(n ) = 1 for the DCBs and cantilevers, re-

spectively [7].

10
2.2.2 Extensional Bulk Acoustic Based Resonators

The extensional bulk mode resonators can take many forms such as disk [12], bar

[13] or beams [14] as shown in Figs 2.3. The principle of operation depends on the

propagation of acoustic wave back and forth within the structural layer of these res-

onators, resulting in extensional motion. These kinds of resonators are much stiffer

than flexural resonator. Thus, they show higher resonance frequency and offer larger

energy storage capability, which means, high quality factor (> 1000). The resonance

frequency of an extensional BAW resonators depends on their dimensions and mate-

rial parameters. The resonance frequency for a BAW bar resonators can be given by

the following equation where E is the resonator Youngs modulus, is the resonator

density and W is the resonator width [14] :

s
1 E
fn,res = (2.4)
2W

There are other modes than the extensional for BAW resonators. One of the well

known modes is the Lame mode shown in Fig. 2.4 ,where the acoustic wave travels

around the resonator circumference [15] [16]. For our thesis, we are interested in both

the flexural and extensional BAW resonators.

2.3 N / MEM Resonator Structure

For an electrostatically transduced resonator, either flexural or bulk resonator,

we may consider a MEM resonator made out of several components, as shown in

Fig. 2.5. For the design and the optimization of the resonator performance, the

components need to be individually optimized according to its function and required

11
 Figure 2.3: Different configurations for BAW resonators (a) Beam resonator [3]
(b)Disk resonator [12] (c) Extensional bar resonator [17].

specifications.

These components are:

(a) Extensional mode (b) Lame mode

Figure 2.4: Simulated displacement of BAW bar type resonators operated in (a) ex-
tensional mode (b) Lame mode where red and blue represent maximum and minimum
displacement, respectively.

12
2.3.1 Mechanical Structure

It represents the main mechanical vibrating part. The material, dimensions and

shape of the mechanical structure determines the resonator frequency. In addition,

the resonator material defines the linear range of the resonator and the thermo-elastic

losses.

2.3.2 Electrodes

The electrodes are the interface between the resonator and the surrounding sur-

rounding electronic circuits. For electro-statically transduced resonators, the elec-

trodes form a parallel plate capacitor with the resonator [18]. This capacitor is consid-

ered as electrostatic transducers converting energy between electrical and mechanical

domains. The first electrode, known as actuation electrode, is the one responsible for

the resonator actuation. The driving signal is applied to this electrode. The second

one is known as the sensing electrode, through which the resonator mechanical mo-

tion is sensed and converted into electrical signal. The separation distance between

the resonator and the electrodes along with the DC applied voltage (quadratic depen-

dence) are very critical in the determination of the motional resistance / transduction

efficiency [19].

2.3.3 Tethers

These are the connecting beams between the resonator structure and the substrate.

Since the mechanical resonator is a free standing structure, it needs to be connected to

the substrate to avoid falling. However, direct connection to the substrate will impede

the resonator motion, deform the mode shape and degrade the quality factor through

the acoustic energy emission in the substrate [20] [21]. This shows the importance of

13
the tether design. Normally, the tethers are thin beams connected to the minimum

motional points (nodal points). Careful design of the tethers highly improves the

resonator Q-factor especially under vacuum conditions [22] [16].

2.3.4 Environment

The environment surrounding the resonator is a paramount parameter in the es-

timation of the resonator Q-factor. In considering resonator performance, there are

two loss mechanisms that depends on its surrounding environment. First, friction the

resonator experience during its motion with the surrounding medium. This is consid-

ered as the dominant loss mechanism during operation under atmospheric air pressure

or in a liquid [23]. This kind of losses is known as slide / squeeze film damping, de-

pending mainly on the medium viscosity and the surrounding pressure condition [24]

[25]. This loss mode can be greatly reduced by perforating the resonator in the case

of vertical motion [26]. The second loss mechanism is the acoustic emission. During

the resonator motion, acoustic energy is emitted and absorbed with its vibration in

the surrounding medium [27]. Operation under vacuum condition eliminates this loss

mode and provides a more stable environment for the resonators operation. On the

other hand, vacuum operation requires a reliable packaging methods. Even if pack-

aging is possible, vacuum operation is not compatible for some applications such as

bio-sensing.

2.4 Transduction mechanisms

As previously mentioned, the MEM resonator consist of a structural layer and

electrodes. The structural layer will not move in its own. It needs an external force

14
Figure 2.5: Schematic diagram for BAW bar type resonator suspended by T-support
showing its main components.

to start moving. Similarly, it needs a sensing mechanism to detect its motion. So,

a driving and sensing mechanisms are needed which are known as an actuator and

detector respectively. The basic concept behind both the actuator and the detector is

the conversion between electrical and mechanical domains, which is generally known

as transduction mechanisms. There are many transduction mechanisms that can be

used for converting electrical into mechanical signals and vice versa, as shown in Fig.

2.6. These mechanisms can be summarized as:

2.4.1 Capacitive Transduction

It is the most commonly used transduction technique. It is based on parallel

plate capacitor. When an actuation voltage is applied on the electrode a capacitor is

formed with the resonator. This voltage will result in an electro-static force leading

to the mechanical motion of the resonator in accordance with Eq. (2.5) [9].

Sa Vdc2
Felectrostatic = (2.5)
2d20

15
where  is the medium permittivity, Sa is the resonator electrode overlap surface area,

Vdc is the applied DC voltage and d0 is the transduction gap height . Increasing the dc

applied voltage (vdc ) increase the electrostatic force. This force increases the resonator

displacement to the point where the resonator collapses on the lower electrode. This

voltage is known as the pull-in voltage (VP I ) and the displacement at which pull-in

occurs is known as the pull-in displacement (XP I ). The pull-in parameters are given

as [8]:
s
kd30 1
VP I = XP I = d0 (2.6)
Sa 3

where k is thee resonator stiffness. Using an AC voltage superimposed over the

DC value leads to the beam motion with a given frequency. This motion changes

the transduction gap, in turn, varying the capacitance and modulating the output

current as:

Q vac c
ioutput = = C0 + Vdc (2.7)
t t t
ioutput = if eedthrough + imotional (2.8)

where Q is the resonator total charge and C0 is the resonator static capacitance.

The output current of the resonator has two components. The first component is

due to the static capacitance of the resonator. This component is known as the feed-

through current component. The second component is the motional contribution. It

depends on the capacitance variation of the resonator with the applied forces. For

easier detection, we are looking for higher motional to feed-through current ratios.

Different transduction techniques are used for enhancing the resonator output current

as dual port transduction, 2nd harmonic transduction and mixing techniques [18].

The main problem with the parallel plate capacitor is the non-linearity imposed by

16
the electrostatic forces. It varies with the square of the reciprocal of the resonator

displacement. This leads to a resonance frequency shift and imposes an upper limit

on the maximum vibration amplitude [8]. However, such nonlinearity is eliminated

by considering another configuration for the electro-static transduction, called the

comb drive resonator. Since the fringing fields are basically linear, the nonlinearity

problem accompanied with the the parallel plate capacitor is eliminated [28]. Another

constrain with capacitive transduction is the need for small gaps to generate enough

forces for actuation. This becomes more obvious for both high frequency resonator

(> 100 M Hz) which are highly stiff structures and nano-scale resonators which has

a small overlap surface area with the actuation electrode [29]. Dielectric filled gap

resonator offers a better transduction through the utilization of a higher permittivity

gaps either solid [30] [16] or liquid materials [31] instead of the air gaps. Thus, we can

obtain a better transduction efficiency for the same DC voltage. However, advanced

processing techniques are needed for building solid gap resonators.

2.4.2 Piezo-resistive Transduction

It is considered as a unipolar transduction mechanism that is used only for sensing.

It depends on the change in the electrical resistance change in response to the variation

in the strain. The resistance variation is detected through applying a current within

the resonator and monitor its variation with the resonator motion [32]. Since piezo-

resistivity is a material property, not all MEM resonator are detected using this

transduction mechanism [33].

17
2.4.3 Piezo-electric Transduction:

It is a bipolar transduction mechanism where the signal can be converted from

mechanical into electrical and vice versa. Its operation is based on material piezo-

resistivity which means the conversion of the applied electric field into mechanical

strain. Similarly, the electric field is generated when there is a strain variation along

the resonator [34]. The main advantage of this type of transduction is its higher linear

range in comparison with the capacitive transduction. Accordingly, higher storage

energy capability is offered [35]. Similar to piezo-resistivity, only resonators made out

of piezo-electric material may utilize such transduction mechanism.

2.4.4 Thermal Transduction:

It is a unipolar transduction mechanism. It is used only for actuation. It de-

pends on heating up and cooling down the resonator. Due to the material thermal

expansion coefficient, the structure will be driven into resonance due to the expansion

and the contraction accompanied with the heating and the cooling of the resonator

respectively. The most convenient way to thermally actuate the resonator is to use

its electrical resistance for thermally actuating it [36] [37]. Also, another methods

such as photonic absorption effects can be used for heating the resonator [38]. It was

found that thermal transduction results in a better efficiency for higher frequencies

which make it a promising actuation mechanisms for nano-scale resonators [39].

2.5 RLC equivalent circuit model

The equivalent electric circuit representation of mechanical resonator is a conve-

nient way for modeling electromechanical resonators. First, it provides single domain

18
 (a) Capacitive transduction (b) Piezo-resistive transduction (c) Piezo-electric transduction

Figure 2.6: Different types of electro-mechanical transduction.

Table 2.1: Mechanical-Electrical Analogy.

Mechanical domain Force Velocity Mass Stiffness
Electrical domain Voltage Current Inductance Capacitance

representation for MEM devices. Second, it enables the analysis of a mechanical struc-

tures and its connection to electric circuits. Third, it allows the utilization of circuit

simulators for modeling both electrical and mechanical domains [40]. The equivalent

circuit principle is based on the electrical mechanical analogy given in Table 2.1 [9].

The H-resonator shown in Fig. 2.7a can be represented by a single degree of freedom

model. The lumped model consists of a mass (m)connected through four springs (k)

to the substrate with an electrode below it. Figure 2.7b shows the representation of

the resonator according to the SDOF mechanical system [7]. Here m represents the

rigid mass, k represents the stiffness of the four beams, c represents different losses

either viscous or anchor losses to be discussed in the next section. Based on Table 2.1,

the mechanical resonator can be represented electrically as given in Fig. 2.8 where

represents the transduction factor, C0 is the static overlap capacitance and cp denotes

the parasitic capacitance

19
 (a) Schematic diagram of H-shaped res- (b) SDOF lumped model
onator

Figure 2.7: Lumped model representation of H-shaped resonator.

Figure 2.8: Electrical equivalent circuit representation for lumped MEM resonator.

For some structures such as the cantilever, the mass and spring arent clearly

separated. The cantilever is considered as continuous structure with infinite DOFs.

Consequently, infinite number of resonance frequencies and modes are expected. Each

mode has different shape which leads to different effective stiffness (kef f ) and effec-

tive mass (mef f ). However, these structures can be represented in terms of lumped

model through using the effective values (kef f , Mef f ) for each mode.These values are

calculated according to the following equations [40]:

20
 Z l
mef f = bh2n (x)dx (2.9)
0
Z l
kef f = n (x)%[n (x)]dx = n2 Mn (2.10)
0
4
%(x) = EI 4 (2.11)
x
Z l
ref f = c2 (x)dx (2.12)
0
Z l
0 Vdc (x)
n = b (2.13)
0 d20

The resonator equivalent circuit for a continuous system is shown in Fig. 2.9. Each

branch represents the resonator equivalent circuit for a given mode, assuming no cou-

pling between different resonance modes.

The resonator equivalent circuit is used in the design of electrical sensing circuit, as

will be discussed in Chapter 5. Mainly, these circuits detect the resonator displace-

ment through measuring the resonator motional current, converting this current into

voltage. Then, a high gain amplifier is used for generating a readable output signal.

A buffer stage is needed to isolate the driving load from amplifier. Importantly, these

circuits must be a low noise circuit with minimum parasitics to increase the resonator

dynamic range [41] [4] [42] [43].

2.6 Damping techniques

N / MEM resonators offer much higher Q-factor for kHz / MHz resonance fre-

quency compared to electrical resonators. This high Q-factor can be achieved through

the proper design to minimize the resonator losses. Mainly, there are three types of

losses. First, the anchoring losses that can be optimized through proper tether design

and positioning. Second, the viscous losses that depend on the surrounding medium.

21
 Figure 2.9: Electrical equivalent circuit for distributed MEM resonator.

Third, the material losses represented in thermo-elastic damping which puts the up-

per limit for the MEM Q-factor [44]. The total Q-factor can be evaluated from Eq.

(2.14) where Qanchor denotes the anchor losses, QV iscous represents the viscous limited

Q-factor and Qmat is the material limited Q-factor. In addition there are other types

of losses such as the acoustic emission losses which can be neglected compared to the

previous losses.
1 1 1 1
= + + + ... (2.14)
Qtot Qanchor QV iscous Qmat

22
2.6.1 Viscous Damping

Air damping has many manifestations depending on the way the resonator inter-

acts with the surrounding medium i.e. the resonance mode shape, vibration frequency

along with the resonator dimensions and the spacing to the nearby structure e.g. elec-

trodes. Upon actuation, the resonator starts its motion colliding with the surrounding

medium molecules forcing the medium to carry its velocity. Due to the medium vis-

cosity, the resonator losses some energy in moving the air. The higher the viscosity is,

the more the losses are. This moving viscous medium results in an opposite force af-

fecting the resonator performance. MEM operation in a viscous medium can also lead

to a resonance frequency shift in addition to the Q-factor degradation as explained

in block diagram of Fig. 2.10. This frequency shift is attributed to the compression

and inertia effects of the surrounding air motion [45].

Moreover, as we move to the nano / micro scale, the surrounding gas molecules in-

teraction with the resonator body become more profound. This condition is known

as the gas rarefaction where the resonator surface acts as a slippery surface affecting

the air velocity profile. Therefore,air inertia, compression and damping are observed

[46] [47].

Since the influence of the air on the resonator behaviour depends on several fac-

tors such as: dimensions, pressure, nearby structure, resonance mode and frequency,

relying on dimensionless numbers to simplify the analysis and to provide solid un-

derstanding, is imperative. The following numbers are commonly used to expect the

resonator performance under viscous medium operation [46].

Reynolds Number:It defines the ratio between the viscous to the inertial

forces as given in Eq. (2.15) where gas is the gas density, h0 represents the gap

23
Figure 2.10: Block diagram showing the MEM resonator interaction with the sur-
rounding fluid.

height, ef f is effective viscosity and denotes the driving frequency.

h2 gas
Re = (2.15)
ef f

Squeeze Number:It represents the degree of the gas compression compared

to the viscous damping. This is defined in Eq. (2.16) where L is the resonator

length and p0 is the operating pressure.

12ef f L2
= (2.16)
p0 h20

Knudsen Number:It is a measure of the degree of gas rarefaction and is

defined as the ratio between the mean free path() of the medium molecules

and the resonator characteristic dimension (h0 ).

Kn = (2.17)
h0

24
 Mach Number:It is a ratio between the viscous force due to the resonator

velocity (v) and the acoustic force. This is given by Eq. (2.18) where a is the

sound speed within the medium.

v
Ma = (2.18)
a

Prandtl Number: It is a measure of the thermal condition of the system and

is defined as the ratio between the momentum diffusion (kinematics viscosity)

and the thermal diffusion as given by Eq. (2.19) where cp is the heat capacity

and is the thermal conductivity.

cp ef f
Pr = (2.19)

The air effects are modelled trough solving both the Navier Stokes (NS) equation and

the beam deformation equations. Under certain conditions, the NS equation can be

simplified to the Reynolds or Stokes equation, as will be discussed. Generally, the

viscous effects appear either as squeeze film or slide film or both.

Squeeze Film Damping

Squeeze film damping is the viscous loss mechanism for a parallel plate capacitor

resonator [47]. Under the squeeze film damper conditions, the resonator moves in a

perpendicular direction towards the lower electrode, as shown in Fig. 2.11. The mov-

ing surface squeezes the gas film and causes the it to flow to its borders. The squeeze

damping is attributed mainly to the energy lost in the friction between different fluid

layers having unequal velocity. Therefore, the velocity profile plays an important role

in characterizing the air damping. For the ideal case, the velocity profile in the gas

across the gap, is parabolic. At high frequency, the gas is compressed within the gap

25
leading to a change in the resonance frequency of the structure through modifying its

stiffness [24]. Normally, most MEM resonators operate in the slip flow region where

Figure 2.11: Squeeze film damping for normal moving resonators.

the gas rarefaction must be considered. Veijola treated gas rarefaction through the

principle of effective viscosity. Continuum flow mechanics are used, within slip region

after modifying the medium viscosity, as follows [48]:

ef f = (2.20)
1 + 9.638Kn1.159

To faithfully model the squeeze film effect, solution of the full NS equation is needed

to be solved. However, for low Reynolds number assuming a constant pressure across

the gap, Reynolds equation is enough for characterizing the resonator damping [49].

Bao et al. solved the Reynolds equation for the parallel plate capacitor evaluating

both the effective air damping and stiffness by Eqs. (2.21) and (2.22) [47]:
n2
64pa A X m2 +
cd = n2 2 2
(2.21)
6 h0 m,nodd (mn)2 [m2 +
] + 4

64 2 pa A X 1
ke = 8 n2 2 2
(2.22)
h0 m,nodd (mn)2 [m2 +
] + 4

where is the squeeze number and A denotes the resonator contact surface.

For High frequency (MHz) with small air gaps (4m), we obtain higher Reynolds

26
number. This highlights the need for considering the gas inertia in our calculations.

Moreover, the resonator acts as an acoustic wave radiator, making the pressure across

the gap no longer constant. In such case, Reynolds equation approximation fails and

the full NS is needed to be solved as given in Veijola acoustic model [50] [51].

A well known approach to reduce the squeeze film damping is by perforating the

resonator as shown in Fig. 2.12 [26]. This gives air the chance to flow out of the

gap and, hereby, reducing the air pressure on the resonator, which in turn, enhances

the Q-factor. On the other hand, the air flow modelling becomes more complicated.

Several models studied the air flow in a perforated parallel plate resonator such as

Veijola Compact Model(VCM) [52], Veijola Numerical Model(VNM) [53] and Mixed

Level Model (MLM) [54] [55] [56]. The MLM is considered the most accurate as its

based on both numerical and analytical methods [57].

Figure 2.12: Perforated beam resonator for reduced air damping.

Slide Film Damping

This type of air damping is dominant for lateral moving resonators as shown in

Fig. 2.13 [25]. It has the same geometry as the squeeze film damper. The difference

is that the resonator moves parallel to the electrode [58] [59]. This resonator motion

results in a shear wave across the gap. Here, the air velocity profile is completely

27
different from the squeeze film damper case. This flow is shown in Fig. 2.13, known

as stokes flow. The damping occurs due to the friction between different viscous gas

layers moving with unequal velocities.

Gas rarefaction should also be considered through either the principle of the effective

Figure 2.13: Slide film damping for laterally moving resonators.

viscosity or through applying slip boundary condition at the solid fluid interface given

by Maxwells model [60]. Since the velocity pattern is completely different from the

squeeze film damper case, the effective viscosity is expressed by the experimentally

deduced Eq. (2.23), assuming linear velocity profile[46].

ef f = Kn (2.23)
1 + 2Kn + 0.2Kn0.788 exp 10

where Kn denotes the Knudusen number and is the material viscosity.

Under low Reynolds number, where the inertia force components are neglected, the

full NS equation is reduced to the Stokes equation, Eqs. 2.23 and 2.24 where the

velocity variation (v) is in the z-direction [25]:

  2
v v
= (2.24)
t z 2

28
However for higher oscillation frequency or larger gaps, the inertial effects becomes

more effective. Different models studied the slide film damping for the lateral comb

resonators and different expressions were concluded for the air losses. Also, reduced

order models can be used for estimating the air losses [61]. However, for certain

cases,the air losses modeling is very complicated due to the distributed nature of the

damping and its is highly impacted by the surrounding environment. This requires

finite element modeling ( FEM ), as in the case of air damping for MEMA based

BAW resonators discussed in the Chapter 5.

2.6.2 Anchor Damping

Anchoring the resonator, especially bar type BAW resonator, is very critical for

its performance. The mechanical resonator is a free standing structure connected to

the anchor by the means of the tether. The tether shape, dimension and position

play a very important role for the Q-factor estimation. During the resonator motion,

acoustic energy will be emitted by the resonator into the substrate through the tether.

Due to the large substrate size, the whole energy is lost without any reflections [17].

Clever designs can greatly reduce the anchor losses through connecting the resonator

at the nodal resonator points and matching the tether acoustic impedance with the

substrate acoustic impedance. In addition, the tether determines the pull in voltage

for the resonator [22]. Stiff tethers leads to high pull-in voltage. In this thesis, we used

T-support for anchoring our BAW bar type operated in first extensional width mode.

The length of the T-support is selected such that it has the same flexural resonance

frequency as the bar extensional frequency and, at the same time acoustically matched

to the anchor.

29
 (a) PML simulating (b) Acoustic waves emitted
the substrate within the substrate

Figure 2.14: PML for simulating the anchor losses.

Modeling the anchoring losses for a MEM resonator requires the modeling of the whole

substrate which is completely inefficient for FEM techniques. Different approaches

can be used such as the perfectly matching layer (PML) [62][63], shown in Fig. 2.14,

and high damping substrate (HDS) [17].

For this thesis, we used the PML method. A PML is a finite element method used

for substrate modelling through the acoustic wave absorption without any reflection.

This requires an acoustic impedance matching between the substrate and the PML

and an imaginary damping coefficient. This is obtained by using a material with the

following imaginary material proprieties, Youngs modulus and density, given by the

following equation where is the damping coefficient [63]:

E = iE/ = i (2.25)

Using PML, the effect of the T-support length on the resonator Q-factor is shown in

Fig. 2.15. This shows that there is an optimal support length that should be used

for maximizing the resonator response.

30
Figure 2.15: Simulated anchor limited quality factor for bar-type T supported BAW
resonator.

2.6.3 Thermo-elastic Damping

Thermo-elastic losses are related to the physical properties of the resonator itself

not the surrounding medium as the case of viscous damping. These losses were first

explained by Zener [64]. An acoustical wave passing through the structure cause con-

traction and expansion. This motion results in higher temperature at the expansion

region compared to the contracted ones. According to thermodynamics theory, heat

will flow from high to low temperature regions. This thermal flow will dissipate a

portion of the resonators stored energy leading to quality factor degradation. Intu-

itively, a high thermal conductivity resonators will suffer more from thermo-elastic

losses. To model these losses numerically, both the mechanical and thermal domain

have to be considered as suggested in [65].

An important parameter for the resonator is the relaxation time [9]. It is defined as

the time taken by the thermal flow from the expansion to contraction regions. To

31
reduce the impact of the thermo-elastic damping, it is preferred to operate the res-

onator with a frequency higher than the relaxation time. Thus, the resonator changes

its motion before the the heat flow ends.

2.7 Non-linearity

Electro-mechanical resonators are based on mechanical resonance which is con-

verted by any transduction mechanism, as discussed in section 2.4 , into electrical

signal. The higher the resonator displacement, the higher the output voltage is. In

order to increase the resonator output signal to noise ratio, large displacement is

needed. However, increasing the resonator displacement result in a hysteresis be-

haviour in the resonator harmonic response as illustrated in Fig. 2.16 [66]. This

instability is attributed to few sources of nonlinearity. For example, material non-

linearity which depends on the material lattice structure and stiffness tensor [67].

Another source is geometrical non -linearity where the resonance mode shape deter-

mines determines whether such nonlinearity has an impact on the resonator behaviour

or not [11]. Electrical non-linearity is another source of of instability that appears due

to the non-linearity of the electro-static force associated with the resonator displace-

ment as given in Eq. (2.5). As shown in Fig. 2.16, the critical amplitude is defined

as the maximum vibration amplitude beyond which hysteresis starts to appear. To

estimate the value of the critical amplitude, we write the stiffness expression as given

in Eq. (2.26). Each stiffness term has three components. The critical amplitude is

given by Eq. (2.27) where Q is the resonator quality factor and x is the resonator

vibration amplitude [11].

32
Figure 2.16: Harmonic behaviour of MEM resonator under different AC voltage show-
ing the instability effects.

k = k0 + k1 x + k2 x2 + k3 x3 + ... (2.26)
s
4
xcritical = p (2.27)
3 (3)Q||
   2
3 k2 5 k1
= (2.28)
8 k1 12 k0

2.8 Intermolecular Forces

Scaling a mechanical resonators results in a higher performance which provides

more mass sensitivity for a bio-sensor. At the same time, scaling the resonator di-

mensions down to the nano-scale gives a chance for intermolecular force to appear

and play a prominent role on the resonator performance by changing the pull-in pa-

rameters [68][69]. Moreover, these intermolecular forces, presented either in the form

of the Casimir or vdW forces are nonlinear with the resonator displacement result

33
in a spring softening effect [70]. This effect leads to resonance frequency shift and

contributes to limiting the resonator critical amplitude [71]. These nano-scale forces

may drive the resonator into hysteresis region.

The intermolecular forces originates from the electromagnetic fluctuations between

two nearby surfaces with a separation distance in the range of 100 nm [72]. In our

case, these two conducting surfaces are represented in the resonator and the actuation

/sensing electrode as shown in Fig. 2.17. When the spacing between two surfaces is

lower than the plasma wavelength for the conducting material, the force is simplified

to the vdW force as given by Eq. (2.29) [72]:

ASa
FvdW = (2.29)
6d3

where A represents the resonator Hamaker constant [73], Sa denotes the resonator

electrode overlap area and d is the gap height.

But if the separation distance exceeds the plasma wavelength, the retardation effects

due to the finite speed of the electromagnetic wave propagation becomes more pro-

nounced. In this case, the intermolecular forces are represented by the Casimir force,

which is proportional to the inverse of the fourth power of the separation distance

between two surfaces as given in the Eq. (2.30) [74].

~c0 Sa
Fcas = (2.30)
240d3

where ~ is the modified Planks constant and c0 is the light speed.

The schematic diagram of Fig. 2.17 a NEM DCB under the influence of both elec-

trostatic and intermolecular forces. Both forces act along the same direction. This

means that intermolecular forces results in more static displacement, resulting in,

better electrostatic transduction. These forces are extremely crucial for the NEM

34
switch applications as discussed in [69]. For the resonator, the force non-linearity is

the main factor affecting the resonator behaviour [70]. Moreover, for vibrating struc-

tures, a time varying intermolecular force component appear. This component may

degrade the resonator overall quality factor through increasing the acoustic emission

of the resonator into surrounding medium [75].

In the chapter 5, we have derived an analytical expression for the influence of the

Figure 2.17: A schematic diagram for a DCB under the influence of nano-scale forces.

intermolecular forces on the resonator performance including the resonance frequency

and critical amplitude.

2.9 Meta-material based BAW resonators

Meta-materials are materials whose properties either mechanical (density , youngs

modulus and Poisson ratio) or electrical (permeability, permittivity) can be controlled

through proper design. For instance, perforating a bar resonator with uniformly

distributed square holes results in variation in mechanical properties despite the fact

that the structural material is still the same. For the extraction of the mechanical

properties for the material, we can either use the the static pull test [76] or the phase

diagram method [77]. These materials can be used for building BAW resonators

[78]. Since the resonance frequency of BAW depends on the material proprieties,

35
applying the MEMA for BAW resonators offers an additional way for controlling

the resonance frequency through engineering the material proprieties by varying the

perforation density.

In this thesis, we are interested in perforated SiGe material shown in Fig. 2.18

Figure 2.18: SEM image of MEMA based BAW resonator with different perforation
densities.

for several reasons. First, perforating the bulk resonator reduce the poisson ratio,

and consequently, the acoustic emission within the substrate. Second, the perforation

increase the overall surface area to volume ratio [79]. This improves the resonator bio-

performance under low concentration operation. Third, adding perforations reduce

the resonator overall mass which leads to a higher bio-sensitivity.

On the other side, these added perforations degrade the quality factor [78]. This

drop in quality factor is attributed to the decrease of the energy stored within the

resonator.

In the Chapter 6, we provide a complete modeling with experimental measurements

for the application of the MEMA based resonator for bio-sensing applications.

36
2.10 Fabrication Process

The fabrication process flow described here is based on imec SiGe technology. In

general, a MEM resonator may be fabricated using many other structural materials

and processing techniques. Focusing on this thesis work, the MEM resonator is made

out of SiGe as structural layers with a thickness of 4 m. It is fabricated using surface

micro-machining process with a sacrificial layer of 3m [80]. SiGe is considered as

a promising material for MEMS processing due to its outstanding mechanical prop-

erties, electrical properties and its integrability with CMOS circuit [81]. Figure 2.19

shows a schematic cross section of a MEMS resonators monolithically integrated on

the top of the CMOS circuits. The fabrication process steps are described in Fig.

2.20.

The process of integration starts first with an oxide layer deposited using high den-

sity plasma (HDP) with a thickness of 1 m. Then, an Aluminium (Al) layer with

a thickness of 880nm is sputtered on the oxide layer. Using lithography, Al strips

are defined which will function as inter-connections as given in Fig. 2.20a. Another

oxide layer is then grown on the top of the Al inter-connection using HDP. Chemical

mechanical polishing (CMP) is used to planarize the oxide surface to 400nm as shown

in Fig. 2.20b. After that, a layer of 400nm of silicon carbide (SiC) is deposited for

the protection of the lower metal layer during subsequent processing, as given as in

Fig. 2.20c. Lithography is used to define metal vias to the connection of the MEM

structures to the lower CMOS metal layers. Tungsten (W) is then deposited to fill

vias and followed by CMP process to remove excess W above the via holes, as shown

in Fig. 2.20d.

The next step is to deposit the electrode SiGe layer with a thickness of 400 m using

37
Figure 2.19: The cross section of the MEMS process of the 4 [um] thick SiGe
platform.

chemical vapour deposition (CVD), in Fig. 2.20e. Lithography is then used to define

the SiGe electrode, as shown in Fig. 2.20f. Then, a sacrificial layer of thickness 3m

is deposited on SiGe electrode layer using HDP. Again, lithography is used to define

the trenches for the anchor deposition in Fig. 2.20f. After that, SiGe layer with a

thickness of 4m is deposited as the structural layer described in Fig. 2.20g.

A passivation oxide is then grown on the mechanical SiGe layer in Fig. 2.20h. Lithog-

raphy is used to define the bond pads regions. Aluminium layer of 880 nm thickness

is deposited on the oxide layer to fill the bond pad in Fig. 2.20i. Lithography is used

to define the bond pad paths for the inter-connection, followed by proper etch and

clear steps, Fig. 2.20j. Lithography followed by etching are then used to form the

release holes and the horizontal gaps of the resonator in Fig. 2.20k.

Finally, the structure is released form the underneath oxide layer by etching through

exposure in HF acid for one hour as shown in Fig. 2.22. Since our resonators are

used for the development of a bio-sensing application, no packaging process is needed

at this time. The resonator will be directly in contact with air or bio-fluids.

Since NEM resonators are promising devices for wide variety of applications, in-

38
 (a) The last metal growth on the (b) The oxide layer growth on the
top of the CMOS. metal layer.

(c) SiC growth in the top of the (d) Defining the via.
oxide layer.

(e) Al electrode deposition and (f) Growth of the sacrificial layer

patterning. and anchoring definition.

(g) SiGe deposition as the struc- (h) Passivation layer patterning

tural layer. and deposition.

(i) Sputtering of the Al for inter- (j) Al patterning for the bond
connection. pad.

(k) Defining the resonator hori- (l) Releasing the structure

zontal gaps. through sacrificial layer removal.

Figure 2.20: Thick poly SiGe platform for MEMS processing (step by step).

39
cluding bio-sensing, we considered designing and fabricating NEM devices for the

bio-sensing applications. Figure 2.21 shows a schematic cross section for NEM res-

onator based on imecs SiGe fabrication process. The structural layer of the resonator

has a thickness of 100 nm ( compared to 400 nm on the MEM device ) with a sacri-

ficial of 800 nm. In general, the process flow used to fabricate such NEM resonator

is similar to that described in Fig. 2.20 for the MEM case, with the exception of

dimensions and layer thickness.

Figure 2.21: The process cross section for the NEM platform (100 nm).

40
 CHAPTER 3

BIO-SENSING TECHNIQUES

3.1 Introduction

Advances in semiconductor processing and nano-technology applications opened

new horizons for innovative and enhanced diagnostic tools. These tools are essential

for the advancement of medicine as they provide biomedical researchers and diseases

specialists with better knowledge about the patient condition and disease pathway.

It also give a chance for in-depth understanding of the bio-molecular interactions and

the way to treat different pathogenic diseases. Currently, the bio-detection methods

used in hospitals and clinics either suffer from long analysis time around hours, e.g.

LFAs, or lack sensitivity as in ELISAs. This highlights the need for highly sensitive

biosensor with faster response, as offered by the N/MEM based bio-sensors.

In this chapter, various bio-sensing techniques, showing the advantages and disad-

vantages of each approach, are presented and discussed. It is organized as follows:

First, we introduce the definition of a bio-sensor and the metrics used for its per-

formance evaluation. Then, we discuss the different sensing mechanisms including

electro-chemical, optical and electro-mechanical sensing mechanisms. In this thesis,

we focus on N / MEM bio-sensors due to its projected higher performance compared

41
to other techniques. The other techniques will be discussed for the purpose of com-

parison with the mechanical detection [6].

Several definition of the biosensor are available [82] [10]. According to Turner [10],

the bio-sensor is defined as a quantitative or semi-quantitative analytical instrument

containing a sensing element of bio-logical origin, which is either integrated with or

in intimate contact with physico-chemical transducer.

Figure 3.1: Schematic diagram of biosensor showing its main components.

Based on this definition, the bio-sensor composed of two basic components con-

nected in series, as shown in Fig. 3.1. The main role of the molecular recognition

system (receptor) is to interact with the required molecule. The second part is the

physico-chemical transducer. It converts the chemical interaction into an analytical

physical signal i.e. thermal, electrical or optical. Most often, the physical output

signal is really weak requiring amplification stages for proper display to the user.

Bio-sensors are evaluated based on the following metrics [83]:

42
 Sensitivity: It is the main metric for a bio-sensor. It defines the minimum

detectable concentration of the targeted molecules [83]. It depends on the ki-

netics of the binding mechanism between the transducer and the surrounding

environment and the transducers sensitivity in converting the chemical reaction

into a physical signal.

Selectivity: The bio-sensor should be highly selective for the target analyte

with almost no (or minimum) reaction to motilities having similar chemical

reactions. This represent a basic challenge during the operation in low concen-

tration environment.To overcome this problem, sandwich essays can be used

[84]. Also, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) could be used to amplify the re-

quired analyte before the sensing, enabling low concentration operation [85].

Another approach is to use an array of sensors that interact differently with the

targeted molecules and based on their output signal, the targeted molecule con-

centration can be detected in noisy environment. This technique is commonly

known as electronic nose or electronic tongue [86] [87].

Dynamic range: It is defined as the range over which the resonator is able to

accurately produce an output signal indicating the analyte concentration. The

lower bound is defined by the system noise while the upper limit is dictated by

the device saturation .i.e. non indicative output of the analyte concentration

[88].

Response time: The bio-sensor response should be quick enough so that real

time monitoring of the targeted analyte could be done efficiently. The recovery

time should be small for the re usability of the bio-sensor system.

43
 Others: There are other less important metrics like the life time and signal

reproducibility.

Figure 3.2: Classification of the bio-sensor based on chemical detection and physical
transduction.

Figure 3.2 shows the classification of bio-sensors. Based on the chemical interac-

tion between the sensor and the targeted analyte, bio-sensors are divided into four

types [6]: (1) affinity based assays where highly selective target identification and

44
capture is achieved by employing high specificity between the target and the func-

tionilzation layer on the surface. (2) finger print assay that rely on a multiple of less

selective functionlization layers to identify a target through the characteristic bind-

ing affinities to an ensemble of sensors. (3) separation based assays where chemical

affinities between the functionlization layer and flowing analytes permit spatiotem-

poral separation of analytes (4) spectrometric assays where, for example, the mass or

optical properties of the target are deduced to enable its identification.

3.2 Types of bio-sensors

The bio-sensors can be classified into different types based on their transduction

technique i.e. the conversion from the chemical reaction into a physical signal. Figure

3.2 shows bio-sensor classification based on the principle of operation.

3.2.1 Electrochemical bio-sensor

An electrochemical biosensor uses an electrochemical transducer where electro-

chemical signals are generated during the biochemical reactions and monitored using

suitable chemical technique. An electrochemical biosensor can be regarded as a chem-

ically modified electrode since the conducting electrode (semiconducting, electronic

or ionic) is coated with biochemical film . Generally, electrochemical transduction can

be acheived potentiometric, amperometric, conductometric and calorimetric system

techniques. In potentiometric, detection is based on the potential difference between

an indicator (ion selective electrode) and a reference electrode. This potential differ-

ence between the two electrodes is proportional to the logarithm of the ion activity

or the gas concentration [89]. Most of the potentiometric devices are pH electrodes.

45
Similarly, amperometric detection is based on the measurement of the current result-

ing from the oxidation or the reduction of an electro-active species. It is performed

by the maintaining a constant potential between the functionlized electrode and a

reference electrode. The resulting current is proportional to the bulk concentration

of the electro-active species or its production/ consumption rate within the electrode

adjacent bio-layer [90] [91]. As for the conductomertic method, it is based on the

impedance measurement between two electrodes, through which the targeted analyte

reaction takes place [92]. Finally, the calorimetric systems method, shown in Fig. 3.3,

measure the change in temperature of the solution containing the analyte following

the enzyme action and interpret it in terms of the analyte concentration in the solu-

tion. Due to the exothermic nature of the enzyme reactions, the heat generated by

these reactions is used to determine the analyte concentration [83].

Figure 3.3: Schematic representation of calorimetric biosensor.

46
3.2.2 Optical sensors

Optical bio-sensors are the most well known form of bio-sensors. The fluorescent

labeling detection is considered as a widely used approach for bio-detection. Opti-

cal based bio-sensor integrate optical techniques with bio-logical element to identify

chemical or biological species. Many bio-sensors were developed based on surface

plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy and evanescent waves as discussed in [93]

[94]. Here, we would like to mention two important types of optical bio-sensors, the

whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonator based bio-sensor and surface plasma res-

onance based bio-sensor. Other types of optical bio-sensors can be found in [91] [95]

[96].

Figure 3.4: Schematic diagram of the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) operation for
bio-sensing applications.

47
Surface Plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor

SPR is a physical optics phenomenon which is used for the development of non-

labelled free marker based bio-sensor system. The SPR biosensor is an analytical

device based on the excitation of a plasmon wave at the metal dielectric interface.

Different approaches are used for the generation of the plasmon wave such as using

prism coupler, optical fiber, optical wave guides and grating couplers [97]. The surface

plasmon wave is extremely sensitive to the variation of the refractive index. When the

required bio-molecules are attached to the metal surface, a change to the refractive

index occurs. This leads to a change in the SPR reflection angle as shown in Fig. 3.4.

Whispering Gallery mode resonators

Optical resonators are based upon light oscillating within a resonant cavity. Whis-

pering gallery mode resonators consist of a circular cavity through which the light

is often introduced by evanescent coupling, using a trapped optical fibre placed next

to the cavity [98]. The light is confined within the cavity through internal reflection

as shown in Fig. 3.5. If the light can propagate through the cavity and interfere

constructively, resonance will occur. The resonance is detected through transmission

drop detected by an optical filter. The resonance frequency is sensitive to the optical

path through the cavity. Attached bio-molecules will change the optical path and in

turn a resonance frequency shift will be detected. Further details can be found in the

following papers [99] [100] [101]

3.2.3 Mechanical sensors

N / MEM based sensors are considered as the most promising bio-sensing de-

vices. The main strength of these mechanical biosensor comes from the fact that

48
Figure 3.5: Schematic representation of the operation of the optical whispering gallery
mode (WGM) resonator

its behaviour depend mainly on its physical dimensions. With technology advances,

MEMS dimensions are getting smaller and smaller enabling enhanced performance.

The smaller the resonator mass, the better the sensitivity will be. Besides, minia-

turizing the resonator dimensions will enhance its compliance, resulting in higher

displacement for smaller forces. NEM has been shown to resolve forces down to 1

pN sensitivity and sense a mass of 1 yoctogram (1e-24g) [102]. Moreover, they offer

much faster response allowing mili-second detection instead of hours. Since the NEM

follow semiconductor processing, they provide a good opportunity of integration with

CMOS circuits [79].

However, the main challenge for the N / MEM based biosensor is the packaging.

Electromechanical biosensor can be classified according to its principle of operation

into [6].

49
Figure 3.6: Static electro-mechanical bio-sensor(a) Functionlized cantilever with zero
displacement (z=0) and (b) Static displacement after trapping the bio-molecules.

Static mode bio-sensor

Static devices, also known as deflection / stress based sensors, are generally beams

supported at one end and the other end is free (cantilever). Those beams are func-

tionlized with a given receptor to catch the targeted analyte. Upon the binding of

the targeted analyte, the cantilever tip deflects down depending on the nature of

the binded molecules [103] [104] as given in Fig. 3.6. For deflection measurement,

various techniques are employed. Electrical measurement of the capacitance between

the cantilever and the electrode can be used to detect the displacement. However,

this capacitance is reduced with scaling the device dimensions and the measurement

becomes more prone to noise and parasitics [29]. Another technique is the optical

detection through reflecting a laser beam off the cantilever and detecting the angle

of reflection [105]. Moreover, using a piezo-resistive based cantilever as a resonator

enables a better detection method through measuring the resistance variation [106]

50
Dynamic mode bio-sensor

Mechanical structures can be used for the bio-sensing when operated in their

dynamic mode. The resonance frequency of a mechanical resonator depends on its

mass and stiffness as given by Eq. (3.1) [7].

r
1 k
f0 = (3.1)
2 m

where k is the structure stiffness and m denotes the resonator mass.

Upon functionlizing the mechanical resonator surface with proper receptor agents,

the binding molecules will be attached to the resonator. The added molecules will

lead to the mass and stiffness variation and in turn resonance frequency shifts, as

shown in Fig. 3.7 [6] [107] [108]. By measuring this resonance shift, it is possible

to identify the nature and the concentration of the added molecules. The resonator

quality factor is an important metric in the bio-sensing procedure. To detect small

frequency variation, a high Q-factor is needed. N / MEMS resonators with Q-factor

up to (1e5) in vacuum condition has been reported [6]. However, when operating

the resonator in a viscous medium such as air, water or blood, fluid friction between

the vibrating structure and the surrounding medium highly degrades the Q-factor

[23]. The common practice used to avoid this Q-factor degradation is the dip dry

approach [109]. In this method,the resonator is measured in air / vacuum before

and after being treated with target molecules, then the resonance frequency shift is

calculated. The dip dry approach has several disadvantages such as: (1) loss of

ability to work with activated microbes (2) decrease appeal for POC applications (3)

loss of the insight of the actual kinetics of biochemical surface reactions. (4) wetting

or change in stiffness due to surface adhesion or stress and (5) decrease in affinity due

51
to drying (possibility of the bio-molecules de attachment ).

To overcome these limitations, Manalis et al. proposed building micro-fluidic channels

within the resonator instead of the direct fluid contact. This enables the measurement

within the air or vacuum. These structures are known as suspended micro-channel

resonator (SMR), shown in Fig. 3.8 [110]. This way, the high Q-factor is still pre-

Figure 3.7: Dynamic electro-mechanical bio-sensor(a) Functionlized cantilever and

(b) Resonant cantilever with added bio-molecules.

served offering a much higher sensitivity. Unfortunately, this method still has some

restrictions such as the dependence of amount of the sensed fluid on the micro-fluidic

channel size and the relatively longer response time for detection [111]. Another way

to overcome the viscous damping is the higher mode operation of the resonator [112].

These modes offer smaller displacement which lowers the structure fluid interaction

and yields higher Q-factor. However, this lower displacement makes the detection

procedure more difficult. As discussed in Chapter 2, the fluidic damping is mainly

determined by Reynolds number. The higher the Reynolds number, the lower the

52
 Figure 3.8: Operation of SMR with a tube passing within the resonator.

damping is. One way to increase the Reynolds number is to go for higher frequencies,

which means higher order modes, smaller dimensions or stiffer structures. The higher

order modes, as discussed earlier, have some problems concerning the detection pro-

cedure. For dimension scaling, technology puts a lower limit on the resonator dimen-

sions. Moving to stiffer structures as BAW resonators shown in Fig. 3.9 is considered

as good idea [113] [15] [114]. Mainly, BAW resonators offer distinct advantages: (1)

lower fluid interaction than flexural based resonators (2) higher energy capacity and

(3) higher power handling capability offering a wider dynamic range. On the other

hand, a higher voltage / current is needed to actuate these resonators due to its rel-

atively high motional resistance. To reduce their motional resistance,dielectric-filled

gap resonators can be used with either solid [30] or aqueous mediums [31].

53
 (a) BAW lame mode bar res- (b) BAW lame mode resonator (c) Disk BAW bio-sensor [114]
onator as bio-sensor [15] with a solid gap for en-
hanced transduction used for
bio-sensing [113]

Figure 3.9: Different types of bio-sensors based on BAW resonators.

Another approach for employing the resonators for bio-sensing is to measure the

frequency shift of the stability boundary (fc ) of the first order parametric resonance

tongue (critical frequency) [115], shown in Fig. 3.9, which is the frequency at which

the instability occurs. This frequency is related to the resonator mass through Eq.

(3.2) where k is the stiffness N/m, r is the electro-static coefficient and VA is the AC

applied voltage [115].

r
1 4k + 2rVA2
fc = (3.2)
2 m

Mostly importantly, the critical resonance frequency given by the previous equation

is independent of the Q-factor. This is a promising approach for mass detection in

highly viscous medium without performance degradation, as in the case of the simple

harmonic (SHR) resonator. However, more complex schemes are needed to drive the

resonator into the correct region of operation and to track the critical frequency shift

[116]. Besides, this detection approach is dependent on the operating conditions i.e.

temperature, AC applied power and time.

54
In conclusion, there are mainly two approaches for bio-molecules detection using me-

chanical devices. The first one, known as the static mode, where the resonator static

displacement is used as indicative of the added molecules. This detection method op-

erates well both in air and viscous fluids. However, it is limited to the near monolayer

region. The second approach is known as the dynamic mode resonator, where the

added mass due to the binding molecules will change the resonance frequency. Dy-

namic mode resonators perform poorly in viscous medium. Using different methods

mentioned above, the dynamic mode sensor can detect mass down to the yoctogram

(1e-24). Based on this, the work of this thesis is mainly focused on dynamic N /

MEM resonators.

3.3 Bio-sensitivity enhancement

The bio-sensitivity for a given sensor is defined as the minimum detectable concen-

tration of the targeted molecules. For the mechanical domain sensor , bio-sensitivity

can be redefined as the minimum resonance frequency shift for a given added mass

per unit surface area as shown in Eq. (3.3) [117].

1 f0 1 df0
Sm = lim = (3.3)
m0 f0 m f0 dm

The minimum limit for the bio-sensor depends on the minimum detectable resonance

frequency shift. The restrictions on the resonance frequency measurement is returned

to (1) extrinsic factors as the bandwidth of the frequency sensing circuit and external

sources of noise and (2) intrinsic noise generated within the device itself as discussed

by Roukes [88]. With proper designing the read out circuits, the extrinsic effects cab

be ignored. Therefore, the intrinsic effects .i.e thermo-mechanical noise, temperature

fluctuations, adsorption and desorption noise and momentum exchange noise will be

55
the ultimate limit for the mass detection. For our resonator, the ultimate limit to

the mass sensing is mainly attributed to the thermo-mechanical noise. The minimum

detectable mass can be defined as given in the following equation [88]:

1
2Mef f Eth 2 f 1
mM in,A = ( ) ( )2 (3.4)
Aef f Ec 0 Q

Based on this equation, there are two obvious ways to enhance the bio-sensitivity.

First is the scaling of the resonator mass either through proper design or moving

towards advanced fabrication technologies. The second way is to increase the surface

area to volume ratio through adding nano-wire over the resonator surface as proposed

by lu [38] or using perforated materials on the top of the nano-resonator surface [79].

Tappura [15] also has presented a basin based BAW resonator where a larger surface

area is offered. All these approaches introduce a higher surface area at the expense

of the added mass which works against the resonator sensitivity.

In this thesis, we introduce a new design for BAW resonator that offers higher surface

area to volume ratio and at the same time a lower mass as shown in Fig. 2.18. This

is done through introducing uniform hole perforations within the resonator body.

Although these designs were previously employed for different applications such as

timing devices [78], this work represents the first time such a method is applied for

the bio-sensing.

56
 CHAPTER 4

EXPERIMENTAL SETUP

In this chapter, the experimental setup used for measuring the bio-sensitivity of

the bar resonator is presented. First, we discuss the electrical measurement connec-

tions required for detecting the resonator motion under ambient pressure condition.

Second, we show the extraction of the RLC components for the MEM resonators.

Then, the different steps for the functionlization process are explained.

4.1 Measurement setup

The N / MEM resonators are capacitively actuated in its first extensional mode

as discussed in Chapter 2. They is driven as a dual port system with an electrode for

actuation and another one for sensing [18]. Figure 4.1 shows the measurement setup

for the bar resonator. An AC voltage superimposed on the DC voltage are used for

the actuation. Electrostatic forces drive the resonator in its first extensional width

mode. A motional current will be generated due to the capacitive variation between

the sensing electrode and the bar resonator.The resonator is measured under ambient

pressure conditions.

The bar resonator are measured using PAV and impedance analyzer as shown in

Figs. 4.1 and 4.2. The resonator is placed in an temperature and pressure controlled

57
Figure 4.1: Measurement setup for the bar resonators using the network analyzer.

Figure 4.2: The main parts of the system used for measuring the bar resonators.

58
 (a) (b)

Figure 4.3: Measured and fitted S21 parameters for full BAW bar type resonators.

chamber filled with nitrogen. RF probes are used for the resonator excitation and

sensing. The output measured S21 parameter are given for the resonator under

different driving voltage in Fig. 4.3a.

4.1.1 RLC extraction

As discussed in Chapter 2, the resonator response is described in terms of the

equivalent circuit given in Fig. 2.8. The circuit components are extracted experimen-

tally by fitting the measured S21 -parameter to a circle in the complex plan (Nyquist

plot) as shown in Fig. 4.3 [118] [119]. A fit quality is calculated based on the ratio

between the distance from each data point to the centre of the circle and the radius

of the circle. A good fit means that the fit quality is around unity. Data is neglected

if fit quality is less than 0.6 or greater than 1.2.

The noise measurements are taken into account by shifting the circle and rotating

its axis to get rid of the parasitics added to the measurements. Once the circuit

59
parameters L, C and Rm are extracted. The resonance frequency and the critical

amplitude can be calculated using the equations:

r
1 L
fres = (4.1)
2 C
1
Q= LC (4.2)
R

The Q factor is also estimated based on the frequency span through 1/2 points circle

around the resonance. Through several iterations (a process known as unconstrained

nonlinear optimization), the estimated resonance frequency and quality factor are

compared with the calculated values based on the equivalent circuit and the RLC

and adjusted till the minimum difference is achieved.

Using the extracted equivalent circuit components, we compared the measured har-

monic response of the bar type BAW resonators with the numerical computation as

discussed in Chapters 5 and 6.

4.2 Functionlization

Upon the adhering of the desired bio-molecules to the surface of MEM resonator,

the resonance frequency shifts making it possible to detect the presence of such bio-

molecules. The MEM surface needs to be functionlzized with proper chemistry to

ensure the selective adhesion of the desired molecule to be detected. In our case, we are

interested in detecting the presence of DNA. Therefore, the functionlization process

depends on the formation of strong hydrogen bond between the DNA on the resonator

surface and its targeted complement DNA. Moreover, this process determines the

resonators selectivity and influence its sensitivity. The functionlization process is

schematically illustrated in Fig. 4.4. Briefly, it consists of the following steps [108]:

60
 Oxidation: This step is used to oxidize the resonator SiGe surface by soaking

the resonator in PIRHANA followed by exposure to the Ozone in UV chamber

and thermally curing it. Oxygen site on the surface are critical for the APTES

layer growth in the following step.

APTES coating: APTES ( 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane) is a sinlization agent

used to deposit a self assembled monolayer (SAM) on the oxidized SiGe surface

which works as an intermediate layer between the oxide and the cross linker.

Deposition of Cross linker A linker molecule attaches the complementary DNA

probes to the device surface. It increases the accuracy and efficiency of hy-

bridization between the tethered probe and the target DNA sequences. The

linker consists of several active end-groups (hydroxyl or amino group) for at-

tachment to the APTES on the lower side and the DNA on the upper side.

Immobilized DNA The layer provides the connection point for the targeted

DNA. It consists of complement single strand DNA (ssDNA) attached covalently

to the cross linker layer. This layer determines the sensor selectivity. The probe

ssDNA (a NH2-modified 50-ssDNA) is immobilized onto the activated silane

layer (500 nM in 150 mM phosphate buffer saline (PBS)) for 1 h.

Adding Blocking Agent Since the DNA immobilization layer is not uniform,

some active sites of the silane layer may remain uncovered at the end of this

process. These active sites deteriorate the selectivity of the sensor. To neu-

tralize these active sites, Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) is used as a blocking

agent. Therefore, the sample was incubated in 1mg/ml BSA dissolved in a

hybridization buffer for 6 h. A drying step was added after the blocking step

61
 Figure 4.4: Different steps for the resonator functionlization.

where the sample was left in vacuum for 2 h at 40o C. The temperature was kept

intentionally low to prevent damaging the functionalization chemicals.

Specific and Non-specific DNA The biosensor MEM device is now ready for ex-

posure to specific and nonspecific DNA (Hybridization). The immobilized DNA

on the MEM surface forms a strong hydrogen bond only with its complement

(targeted DNA), generating a stable double strand DNA. The non-specific DNA

should not react with our structure. Depending on the amount of the added

DNA, shift in the resonance frequency of the system will be detected.

It is now clear that during the functionlization process, a MEM - based biosensor

is exposed to several wet process for extended period of time. That highlights the

need for taking into account the impact of the usage environment on the design of

62
the MEM based biosensor. A successful sensor is expected to provide the desired

sensitivity, selectivity and operational reliability, all at the same time.

4.3 Bio-sensitivity measurement

Dip and dry method is used for the measurement of the bio-sensitivity. In this

approach, the resonance frequency is measured after the resonator is functionlized

under ambient pressure condition. Then, the resonator is exposed to the different

DNA molecules. After that, the resonator is dried using nitrogen gun and the res-

onance frequency is measured again. Based on the frequency shift between the two

measurements, the mass of the added molecules are determined. This way, we avoid

measuring the resonator performance while within within fluid, which retains a char-

acteristics Q-factor of the device. On the other hand, the dip and dry method has

several disadvantages [109]: (1) loss of insight into actual kinetics of the biochemical

reaction (2) potential change in stiffness of the resonator due to drying steps (3) de-

crease in the sensor affinity on drying.

63
 CHAPTER 5

MODELING AND SIMULATION

5.1 Introduction

In this chapter, we present our contribution to the modeling of the MEM / NEM

resonators for DNA sensing. In this regard, we considered three families of resonators.

Firstly, we selected thick DCB resonators adopted and fabricated at imec using 4 m

SiGe platform. Secondly, we modeled thin flexural resonators i.e. cantilevers and

DCBs with SiGe thickness of 100 nm ( currently under development and in fabrica-

tion). Finally, meta-material based BAW resonators for fabrication using the 4 m

imec SiGe platform.

We started with the thick DCBs resonators. The behaviour of those beams under

ambient pressure condition is analytically modeled and numerically simulated where

both the resonance frequency and the quality factor are extracted and compared. A

good and an alternative candidate is a flexural NEM resonator with 50 nm thickness.

It has lower mass than the DCB which results in a higher bio-sensitivity. In this nano-

scale regime (50nm), intermolecular forces represented by the Casimir and vdW force

play a crucial role in determining the resonator performance. An analytical model,

for the influence of these forces (i.e. Casimir and vdW), on the harmonic response of

the resonator including its static displacement, resonance frequency and their energy

64
storage capability, is built. Despite the low air interaction and small mass, NEM

resonators have lower quality factor compared to their MEM counterparts [120].

Moreover, flexural resonators have a low surface area to volume ratio. As a re-

sult, we moved to the BAW resonators to take the advantage of its high Q-factor

(around 8,000). Furthermore, we introduced square holes within the resonator body

to enhance its bio-sensitivity, introducing the meta-material (MEMA) based BAW

resonator. COMSOL simulations were performed to study the effect of the added

perforations on the resonator performance (i.e. Q-factor, resonance frequency, mo-

tional resistance and bio-sensitivity). Finally, we present an optimization procedure

for the perforation density to maximizing the dynamic range and bio-sensitivity of

the resonator. In the next chapter, we discuss the results of sweeping the resonator

dimensions and operating conditions on its bio-performance.

5.2 Double Clamped Beams

A DCB resonator consists of a beam with a rectangular cross section fixed at both

ends as given in Fig. 5.1. The beam is fabricated in imec SiGe platform with a 4m

and 3 m thick structural and sacrificial layer, respectively. Figure 5.1 shows the

SEM image of electrostatically transduced DCB resonators. This beam structure is

the first choice to be evaluated in this work. The resonators are modeled analytically

and numerically where we extract the resonance frequency (fres ) and the quality

factor (Q). Moreover, we study the impact of the resonator dimensions and material

parameters on its behaviour as a bio-sensor under ambient pressure conditions.

65
 (a) SEM image of double clamped (b) Schematic diagram of double clamped beam res-
beam resonators. onators under fluidic and electrostatic forces.

Figure 5.1: DCB resonators with 4 m thickness.

5.2.1 Analytical model

Energy losses for MEM resonators are mechanically originated. Details of such

mechanical losses were discussed in section 2.6. As biosensor is based on dip and dry

measurement method under ambient pressure conditions, the viscous damping is the

dominant loss mechanism. Focusing on the resonator friction with the surrounding

medium such as air or blood, the viscous force induced by the resonator friction

with the surrounding medium leads to inertial, compression and damping effects.

Reynolds and squeeze numbers defined in Eqs. (2.15) and (2.16), are used to express

the importance of inertial and compression effects relative to damping effects [46].

In the case of the DCBs, the Reynolds number is small enough to practically ignore

the internal forces. Thus, only the damping and the compression forces need to be

considered. This condition simplifies the complicated 3D NS equation into the simple

2D Reynolds equation expressed as follows [24]:

h30 2 p 2 p
 
h0 p w
2
+ 2 = + (5.1)
12 x y pa t t

66
where p is the fluidic pressure exerted on the resonator, h0 is the gap height at zero

force, denotes the medium viscosity, and w is the resonator displacement in the

vertical direction.

Reynolds equation describes the variation of the pressure across the resonator surface

with the resonator driving force and dimensions. Reynolds equation coupled with

the resonator equation of motion are solved simultaneously to describe the resonator

motion under ambient pressure condition as given in Eq.(5.2) [49].

4w 4w 4w 2w
 
D + 2 + + m tb = F = p(x, y, t) (5.2)
x4 x2 y 2 y 4 t2

where D is the flexural rigidity, m is the resonator material density and F denotes

the force per unit area.

As discussed earlier, at dimensions ( comparable to 10 m ), the air becomes rarified.

In this case, the resonator surface becomes slippery (Knudsen number Kn < 0.1).

This gas rarefaction leads to a tangential velocity jump between the resonator and

the surrounding air. Gas rarefaction effect is accounted for in terms of the effective

viscosity principle, where we use the effective viscosity(ef f ) instead of the actual

viscosity () of the medium when solving the Reynolds equation [48].

ef f = kn = (5.3)
1 + 9.638Kn1.159 h0

67
Using Green function transformation, pressure exserted by the fluid on the resonator

can be written as [121]:

n+m
!
1
16bm (1) 2 ieit mx ny
p(x, y, t) = m,n=odd 2 cos cos (5.4)
2 mn kmn
+ i 2L W

2 2 2 2
m n
kmn = 2
+ (5.5)
4L W2
12ef f
= 2 (5.6)
h0 pa
 m 23 m2 2
bm = m1 4 4 + 2 2 [sin() + cos()]
2(1) 2 ( m16 ) 4( m 4 )
(5.7)
m2 2 1
+ m2 2
[sinh() + cosh()]
4( + 4 ) l

Integrating the pressure over the resonator total surface area, the total fluidic force

is expressed as:
X 64b2m ieit
ftot = (5.8)
m,n=odd
4 m2 n2 kmn
2 / + i

The variables ( and )depends on the mode constant () according to the fol-

lowing:

L = cosh() cos() + [sinh() sin()] (5.9)

= [cosh() + cos()/sinh() + sin()] (5.10)

Therefore, the damping coefficient, defined as the ratio between the total fluidic force

to the air velocity, is then given by:

pa LW 64 X b2m (m2 2 /4 + n2 )
ca = (5.11)
h0 6 m,n=odd
(mn)2 [m2 2 /4 + n2 ]2 + 2 / 4
W
= (5.12)
L
12ef f W 2
= (5.13)
h20 pa

68
Similarly, the fluidic spring constant, defined as the ratio of the fluidic force to the

resonator displacement, is given as:

pa LW 64 X b2m
ka = (5.14)
h0 6 m,n=odd
(mn)2 [m2 2 /4 + n2 ]2 + 2 / 4

The resonator is represented as lumped model of mass (m), dashpot (c) and spring

(k) as discussed in Chapter 2. Under the ambient pressure condition, the dashpot(c)

is equal to the air damping coefficient(Ca ).The resonator effective spring (kef f ) is

defined as the difference between the resonator stiffness (k) and the air stiffness (kair ):

kef f = k kair .

Based on the lumped model, the beam resonance frequency and quality factor are

given by Eqs. (2.1) and (2.2) where mef f and kef f represents the resonator effective

mass and stiffness respectively.

p
kef f mef f
Q= (5.15)
Ca

5.2.2 Numerical Simulations

COMSOL simulations are performed to validate the results obtained from the an-

alytical model. Air damping phenomena is handled in COMSOL by coupling thin film

damping physics with solid mechanics. Effective viscosity principle is used for includ-

ing the gas rarefaction effects. Eigen frequency simulation is performed, where total

Q-factor and resonance frequency are extracted based on the the following equation,

in terms of the eigenvalue () [63].

Im()
fres = Re() Q= (5.16)
2Re()

69
5.3 NEM resonators

NEM resonators are considered promising devices for bio-sensing applications.

Mechanically, they have a lower interaction with the surrounding air molecules due

to their lower contact surface area with the surrounding medium and high resonance

frequency (> 100M Hz). Additionally, a NEM resonator ( < 100nm thickness) has a

lower mass which, in turn, results in a higher bio-sensitivity, compared to their MEM

counterparts [102]. However, its power handling capability and motional detection

is mainly limited because of its small dimensions. This leads to the need of driving

the resonator close to its critical amplitude. The critical amplitude is the maximum

amplitude beyond which the resonator is driven into the nonlinear region [11]. There-

fore, it is important to precisely define the critical amplitude to ensure the proper

operation of NEM device.

In the next sections, we develop an analytical model to examine the impact of the

intermolecular forces on the resonators performance including the static stability, lin-

ear harmonic behaviour, nonlinear harmonic response and energy storage capability.

The model is then applied to various NEM structures to clarify the impact of the

intermolecular forces.

5.3.1 Model

Our analysis is based on a SDOF model for the NEM resonator represented by

a lumped mass m, stiffness k and damping c as shown in Fig. 5.2. The resonator

is operated under the influence of both electrostatic and intermolecular forces . The

motion of the resonator is governed by the (linear) equation of motion as follows [8]

mx + cx + kx = Fel + Fint (5.17)

70
The electrostatic force is given by Eq. (5.18) where  is the medium permittivity and

Sa is the electrode overlap area [122].

Sa Vdc2
Fel = (5.18)
2(d0 x)2

The intermolecular force is defined in terms of the intermolecular coefficient int and

the intermolecular factor n. This can be written as [72]:

int
Fint = (5.19)
(d0 x)n

For the Casimir force,int and n can be given as [74]:

2 ~c0
int = , n=4 (5.20)
240

where ~ is the reduced Planks constant and c0 is the speed of light.

For the vdW force, int and n are given by the following Eq. (5.21) where A represents

the Hamaker constant.

A
int = , n=3 (5.21)
6

Impact of intermolecular forces on the behavior of the resonator depends on its

stiffness, gap height and overlap surface area with the driving electrode. To enable

the analysis, we define the intermolecular parameter int to represent the intensity of

the intermolecular force and is given by Eq. (5.22) [69] [70]. The higher int for a given

structure is, the higher the impact of nano-forces is. Increasing the intermolecular

force leads to an increased displacement until the pull-in condition is reached where

the resonator collapses with the driving electrode. The value of int at which the

pull-in occurs solely due to the intermolecular forces without any driving voltage is

known as the pull-in intermolecular parameter P I given in Eq. (5.23). Similarly,

71
Figure 5.2: A single degree of freedom model with mass m, stiffness k and damper
c, representing an electrostatically driven resonator with a transduction gap d0 and
overlap surface area with the electrode Sa .

increasing the applied voltage leads to pull-in condition. The pull-in voltage is given

by the standard expression (5.24) [122].

Sa
int = (5.22)
kdn+1
0
nn
P I = (5.23)
(n + 1)n int
s
2
3 kd30
VP I = (5.24)
3 Sa

Parameter normalization

For convenience, we introduce non-dimensional parameters that allow us to de-

velop our model and draw general conclusions. The normalized intermolecular pa-

rameter , normalized voltage V and normalized displacement xd are defined by

Eqs. (5.25 - 5.27). The parameters V and represent the ratio of the electrostatic

and the intermolecular forces to the structure elastic force, respectively. Both V and

72
 vary from zero i.e. the absence of the respective force to unity i.e. pull-in occurs

due solely to the force considered.

Vdc
V = (5.25)
VP I
int
= (5.26)
P I
x
xd = (5.27)
d0

Reducing the resonator transduction gap height, increases. The gap height at

which reaches unity is known as the critical gap dcrit given by Eq. (5.28). The dcrit

is considered as an important parameter that should be avoided on designing NEM

resonators.
1
(n + 1)n int Sa
  n+1
dcrit = (5.28)
nn k

The influence of the intermolecular forces on the resonator is studied through the

analysis of three cases: static, linear harmonic and nonlinear harmonic behavior.

Static Analysis and Response

In the static case, Eq. (5.17) is reduced to Eq. (5.29), where xst is the static

displacement. At pull-in, the derivative of the forcing term is equal to that of the

mechanical force, as expressed in Eq. (5.30).

kxst = Fel + Fint (5.29)

(Fel + Fint )
k= (5.30)
x

In the normalized form, using the expressions (5.25-5.27), Eqs. (5.29) and (5.30) can

be written as Eqs. (5.31) and (5.32) that define the link between , V and xst the

73
static pull-in condition.

22 V 2 nn
xst = + (5.31)
33 (1 xst )2 n + 1n+1 (1 xst )n
23 V 2 nn+1
1= 3 + (5.32)
3 (1 xst )2 n + 1n+1 (1 xst )n

Linear Harmonic Analysis and Response

For harmonic behavior, we consider the resonator being operated under the influ-

ence of a voltage vt = VDC +vac sin(t) that leads to a total displacement (x = xst +xd )

where xd represents the dynamic displacement of the resonator around its static po-

sition xst . The nonlinear electrostatic and intermolecular forces can be expanded

around xst in terms of xd as shown in Eqs. (5.33) and (5.35). These expansions

can be written in terms of stiffness coefficients as given in Eqs. (5.34) and (5.36)

where k1e , k2e , k3e and k1i , k2i , k3i represent the spring softening terms introduced by

the electrostatic and intermolecular forces respectively.

Sa Vdc2
 
2 6 2 18 3
Fel = 1+ xd + x + x + ...
2(d0 xst )2 (d0 xst ) 2!(d0 xst )2 d 3!(d0 xst )2 d
(5.33)
Fel = Fel0 + k1e xd + k2e x2d + k3e x3d + ... (5.34)
 
int n n(n + 1) 2 n(n + 1)(n + 2) 3
Fint = 1+ xd + x + x + ...
(d0 xst )n (d0 xst ) 2!(d0 xst )2 d 3!(d0 xst )2 d
(5.35)
Fint = Fint0 + k1i xd + k2i x2d + k3i x3d + ... (5.36)

Assuming an infinitesimally small dynamic displacement, the nonlinear terms can

be neglected. Subtracting Eq. (5.29) from Eq. (5.17) and using Eqs. (5.34) and

(5.36), the motion of the resonator is described by the following linearized equation,
2
vac
assuming Vdc2 >> 2
as [8]:

mxd + cxd + k1,ef f xd = fac (5.37)

74
 Vdc vac
Where fac = (d0 xst )2
denotes the electrostatic force component due to the applied

ac voltage vac . The total effective stiffness k1,ef f accounts for both k1e and k1i spring

softening terms and is given as:

k1,ef f = k k1,e k1,i (5.38)

This can be written in the normalized form as:

k1,ef f = k1,ef f /k = 1 k1,e k1,i (5.39)

The electrical and intermolecular stiffness terms are extracted from Eqs. (5.33) and

(5.35) using the definitions of Eqs. (5.25-5.27) as:

23 V 2 nn+1
k1e = k1i = (5.40)
34 (1 xst ) (n + 1)n+1 (1 xst )n+1

This shows that the effective stiffness of the resonator depends on the applied DC

voltage, resonator gap as well as, the intensity and the scaling power of the nano-

forces. The resonance frequency depends on the resonator effective stiffness and the
q
k1,ef f
mass as 0 = m
. In its normalized form, the resonance frequency is expressed

as:
0 q
0 = =
(1 k1,e
k1,i )
0 ( = 0, V = 0)
s (5.41)
23 V 2

nn+1
= 1 3 +
3 (1 xst )2 n + 1n+1 (1 xst )n

Increasing the intensity of either the intermolecular or the electrostatic force leads to

an increased resonance frequency shift.

Nonlinear harmonic analysis and response

Under a large vibration amplitude, the nonlinear terms in Eqs. (5.34) and (5.36)

must be considered. These terms drive the resonator into the nonlinear regime. The

75
resonator equation of motion within the nonlinear region is given as [8]:

mx + cx + k1,ef f x + k2,ef f x2 + k3,ef f x3 = fac (5.42)

The stiffness terms k2,ef f and k3,ef f have mechanical km , electrical ke , and intermolec-

ular ki components. They can be written as:

k2,ef f = k2,m + k2,e + k2,i (5.43)

k3,ef f = k3,m + k3,e + k3,i (5.44)

In the normalized form:

d0 k2,ef f
k2,ef f = (5.45)
k
d20 k3,ef f
k3,ef f = (5.46)
k

The harmonic response of the resonator in the presence of nonlinear terms is estimated

by solving Eq. (5.42). This can be written as follows [11]:

fac /m
xd = q
2 (5.47)
02 2 + (0 0 /Q)2
0

fac
xd = xd /d = q
2 (5.48)
02 2 + (0 0 /Q)2
0

0 = 0 + x2d , 0 = 1 + (xd )2 (5.49)

2 2
3k3,ef f 5k2,ef f
3k3,ef f 5k2,ef f
= 2
, = 2
(5.50)
8k1,ef f 12k1,ef f 8k1,ef f 12k1,ef f
Vdc vac Sa
fac = 2 , xd = xd /d (5.51)
Vpi (1 xst )2 )

Where fac is the normalized AC electrostatic force, xd represents the normalized

resonator dynamic displacement, =

0
is the normalized resonance frequency and

Q denotes the resonators quality factor. The critical amplitude is estimated using

76
the first three stiffness term as [11]:
s s
4 xc 4
xc = 0 , xc = = (5.52)
3 3Q d0 3 3Q

Energy storage capability

The maximum energy stored within the resonator when operated in its linear re-

gion depends on the effective stiffness and critical amplitude according to the following

[8]:
1
Emax = k1,ef f x2c (5.53)
2

The intermolecular forces affect the stored energy through decreasing the resonator

effective stiffness and limiting the critical amplitude. The relation between the energy

storage capability of the NEM resonator and its phase noise can be clearly seen during

its operation as a linear oscillator. The energy stored determines the oscillator output

phase noise to carrier ratio L() as given in Eq. (5.54) where kB is the Boltzmanns

constant, T is absolute temperature, 0 is the resonance frequency and is the

frequency offset of the carrier frequency [11].

2kB T Q kB T 0

L() = 10log + (5.54)
Emax 0 Emax Q 2

Decreasing the resonator maximum stored energy of the resonator increases the out-

put phase noise to carrier ratio. Therefore, the intermolecular forces play a crucial

role in determining the noise performance of NEM resonators.

5.4 Meta-material BAW resonators

Flexural resonator, either MEM or NEM suffer from low surface area to volume

ratio. Moreover, viscous damping highly degrades their quality factor when operating

77
under ambient pressure condition. Keeping these issues in mind, we considered the

meta-material based BAW resonators as our next candidate. BAW resonators are

known for their high Q-factor (> 1000) making them good candidates for the bio-

sensing applications. As discussed in the previous chapter, the meta-material based

resonator, shown in Fig. 5.3, features square holes. These holes dramatically increase

the surface to volume ratio and at the same time reduce the resonator effective mass.

Moreover, they provide a higher chance for the bio-molecules to attach to the lower

face of the resonator. On the fabrication side, we expect that the holes eliminates the

possibility of stiction during both the fabrication process and the bio-functionlization

step of the resonator. These attributes improve the resonator performance as a biosen-

sor under low concentration conditions. Mechanically, these holes change the effective

mechanical parameters as density and Youngs modulus, depending on the resonator

effective perforation density. This mechanical layer is known as Meta-material.

The meta-material based BAW resonator in Fig. 5.3 consists of a bar with 220m

Figure 5.3: Schematic diagram of the MEMA based BAW resonators.

78
long and 110m wide suspended in free space by means of T-support. The transduc-

tion is done through a horizontal gap of height 250 nm by applying a voltage from

one side and measuring the output current from the other side. The bar itself, as

as a structural layer, features square holes with a given perforation pitch and hole

size. Figure 5.4 shows a SEM image for MEMA bar based resonator with different

perforation densities

We consider two families with different perforation densities to study the impact of

the hole size on the harmonic response. Each family has six resonators with several

anchor length around the optimum value [22]. The first family has solid resonators

without any perforations except for standard release holes. The second family has

resonators with effective density of ef f = 0.68 and a perforation pitch p = 5m. The

harmonic behaviour of each family is modeled and the bio-sensitivity is calculated for

each family.

Figure 5.4: SEM image of the MEMA based BAW resonators.

79
5.4.1 Modeling

The equivalent RLC circuit is used to model the full harmonic response of the

MEM resonator. We studied the influence of adding a regular pattern of square

holes with different densities on the RLC equivalent circuit for the resonator under

ambient pressure operating conditions. The equivalent circuit was extracted both

numerically and experimentally, then, the resonance frequency (fres ), quality factor

(Q) and motional resistance (Rmotional ) were calculated.

Resonance frequency

Adding holes to the bar resonator modifies the mechanical parameters of the

resonator: density (), Youngs modulus (E) and Poisson ratio (). For the extraction

of these parameters, two techniques can be used: phase extraction and static pull test.

First, the phase extraction is performed using the eigen frequency analysis. Based on

the phase diagram, we extract the acoustic wave propagation velocity within the bar

[77]. In the static pull test, a unit cell is used for the extraction of the mechanical

parameters [123], as shown in Fig. 5.5. A constant strain is applied on the unit

cell lower surface. The side walls are kept straight. By calculating the extensions

in both directions, the effective poisson ratio (ef f ) can be evaluated. Similarly, the

ratio of the stress to the strain define the effective Youngs modulus (Eef f ). Knowing

the effective mechanical parameters Eef f and ef f , the resonance frequency for the

meta-material based bar can be evaluated as:

s
Eef f
fres = (5.55)
ef f

80
 Figure 5.5: A static pull test for a unit cell of BAW bar type MEM resonator.

Air damping

when utilized as a biosensor, the MEM resonator is operated in the presence of

either air or fluid. In both cases, the viscous damping through friction with the sur-

rounding medium limits the resonator quality factor. In the perforated case, squeeze

film damping occurs within the transduction gaps of the resonator and the perfora-

tions in the bar.

For the two families considered in our studies, the resonance frequency varies from

18M Hz to 25 M Hz. For this frequency range, the calculated Reynolds number using

Eq. (2.15) shows that the three fluidic effects (inertial, compression and damping )

must be considered for the modeling of the resonator. Therefore, solving the lin-

earized NS equation is needed to estimate the resonator Q-factor.

Since the resonator operates within the slip region, we used the effective viscosity

principle for modeling the gas rarefaction for both the slide film damping and the

squeeze film damping as given in Eqs. (2.20) and (2.23) [25] [24]

81
A COMSOL FEM is built and used for solving the linearized NS equation and the bar

equation of motion. Figure 5.6 shows the problem layout simulated in COMSOL to

model the bar resonator, where the frequency of the boundary load applied is swept

around the resonance. Based on the ratio between the resonance frequency and the

3dB points, the Q-factor is estimated.

We calculated the harmonic response for both families of MEMA resonators. The

Figure 5.6: Bar cross section showing different air viscous damping mechanisms.

quality factor is extracted from the harmonic response of the resonator.

Motional resistance

The motional resistance (Rmotional ) is considered as an important parameter for es-

timating the resonator harmonic behaviour. It determines the dynamic displacement

of the resonator under a given applied ac voltage. The lower the motional resistance,

the higher the dynamic displacement is. The motional resistance depends on both

the resonator Youngs modulus(E), the applied DC voltage (Vdc ), the transduction

gap d0 and the resonator thickness (t) as given by the following equation [17]:
p
Eef f ef f d40
Rmotional = (5.56)
8Vdc2 2 LtQ

82
Motional resistance represents the current drawn by the resonator at the resonance.

Thus, it is an indicator of the resonator signal to noise ratio. It can be seen from the

previous equation that the motional resistance depends mainly on the transduction

gap and the applied DC voltage. Increasing the resonator thickness increases the

resonator output current.

Since adding the perforation decreases the resonator effective mechanical properties

Eef f , ef f and decreases the resonator quality factor. Thus, the motional resistance
p
also changes, depending on the ratio between the Eef f ef f and the Q-factor [19].

Numerical simulation was performed to estimate the resonator motional resistance

Figure 5.7: COMSOL setup for the calculation of the motional resistance of MEMA
based BAW bar type resonators.

using COMSOL electromechanical physics module. Figure 5.7 shows the COMSOL

setup used for the simulation. The frequency of the AC applied voltage is swept. At

resonance, the total driving current drawn by the resonator is calculated [124]. The

motional resistance is computed by evaluating the ratio between the applied voltage

and the motional current.

83
RLC extraction

RLC equivalent circuit, shown in Fig. 5.8, is used for the complete representation

of the resonators response. Based on the calculated motional resistance (Rmotinal ),

resonance frequency (fres ) and the quality factor (Q), we extracted the equivalent

RLC circuit components.

r r
1 1 1 L
fres = , Q= (5.57)
2 LC Rmotinal C

where L and C are the equivalent inductance and capacitance for the bar resonator

respectively.

Figure 5.8: Equivalent circuit through which the equivalent parameters are extracted.

5.4.2 Bio-sensitivity

The bio-sensitivity for a given N / MEM resonator is defined by the resonance

frequency shift (fres ) due to a given added mass(m). The more the resonance fre-

quency shift, the more sensitive the resonator is. Mathematically, the bio-sensitivity

is written as [117]:
A fres
Se = lim (5.58)
fres m0 m

84
where A is the total surface area of the resonator and fres is the resonance frequency.

For the solid BAW resonators (no perforations), the resonator bio-sensitivity is written

as Eq. (5.59) where is the resonators density [113].

1
Se = (5.59)
2t

For the MEMA resonators, the bio-sensitivity can be reduced to the following equation

where s is the perforation size and p denotes the perforation pitch.

2(s2 p2 ) + 4st
Se = (5.60)
2(s2 p2 )t

Assuming highly perforated thick resonators, the bio-sensitivity is written as :

2s
Se = (5.61)
(s2 p2 )

COMSOL simulation is performed to extract the bio-sensitivity based on Eq. (5.58).

A thin layer is grown on the top of the MEMA BAW resonator with the same density.

The eigen frequency for MEMA bar with the added layer is then computed. By

varying the added layer density, the resonance frequency shift is evaluated.

A prominent parameter for the bio-sensor is the minimum detectable concentration

which also determines the dynamic range of the resonator. This parameter depends

on both the resonator surface area to volume ratio and the quality factor. Thermo-

mechanical noise imposes the lower limit of the mass detection for the MEM resonators

as given in Eq. (5.62) [88].

  12  
Mef f Eth f
Mmin,A = (5.62)
Aef f Ec Q0
Eth = KB T (5.63)

Ec = Mef f 02 x2c (5.64)

85
We used the minimum detectable mass (Mmin,A ) instead of bio-sensitivity (Se ) to

compare the bio-performance of different MEM resonators. Based on the previous

equation, we derived a figure of merit (FOM) given by the following equation.

 
3 Q
F OM = Afres 2
(5.65)
M

This figure of merit assumes that the bars have the same vibration amplitude, shape

and operates under the same temperature which all seems reasonable assumptions.

Through sweeping the resonator perforation pitch and size, FOM is calculated to se-

lect optimum resonator dimensions for maximizing its bio-performance as discussed

in the next chapter.

5.5 Sensing Circuit

In this section, we describe a sensing circuit used for the detection of MEM res-

onators displacement. The design of the sensing circuit is based on the electrical

representation of the MEM resonator given in Fig. 2.8. The equivalent circuit con-

sists of two branches, one holds the displacement current (Id ) and the other carries the

feed-through current (If ), given in Eqs. (2.7-2.8). The circuit component values are

computed using Eqs. (2.9 - 2.13) through COMSOL simulations. Figure 5.9 shows

the schematic diagram of the circuit. A capacitive detection method is used based on

the capacitors (Cpol and Cpa ), improving the circuit overall noise performance. The

read out circuit is based on a CMOS voltage amplifier biased as a source follower

(Common drain configuration). The voltage at the gate node of M1 is a function of

the resonator displacement. This voltage controls the current of M1, this current is

86
 Figure 5.9: Read out circuit for MEM resonator [4].

mirrored and amplified through transistors M3 and M4 and finally the voltage across

transistor M2, connected as active load, is measured. This approach minimizes the

input capacitance of the circuit as the gate drain capacitance is smaller than the gate

source capacitance. Finally a buffer stage is used to drive the circuit load.

Cp Cp Vdc
Vg = Vac + Aef f (5.66)
Cp + Cpa Cp + Cpa d0

where d0 is the resonator initial gap height and Aef f is the resonator effective dis-

placement.

The resonator voltage gain and DC operating points are controlled through the proper

selection of the transistor aspect ratios. H-spice simulation, using level 49 of 0.25 m

technology, is performed to estimate the circuit response and output signal under a

given driving ac and DC voltages, as will be discussed in the next chapter.

87
 CHAPTER 6

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

6.1 Introduction

This chapter provides the analytical calculation and numerical simulation results

for the models discussed in Chapter 5. We perform a parametric study for the res-

onator dimensions and material properties to maximize its bio-sensitivity. The chap-

ter is organized as follows. Thick DCB resonators are studied first, estimating their

behaviour under ambient pressure conditions. After that, the influence of the inter-

molecular forces on NEM resonator harmonic response are introduced. COMSOL sim-

ulation results for the bio-performance of the MEMA based BAW resonators are pre-

sented and an optimization process is explained for maximizing the bio-performance

of MEMA BAW resonator. Finally, we present new designs based on the fractal cells

BAW bar type resonators to further enhance the resonator bio-performance.

6.2 Double Clamped Beams

As discussed in Chapter 5, we developed an analytical and a numerical model

for the estimating flexural beam resonance frequency, damping coefficient, air spring

constant and quality factor under ambient pressure condition where squeeze film

damping dominates the resonator losses.

88
6.2.1 Analytical model

Based on Eqs. (5.11 - 5.14), the air damping coefficient and consequently, the

quality factor depend on the dimensions and material parameters of the resonator.

Therefore, we conducted a parametric study of the impact of the resonator dimen-

sions, air gap height, mechanical proprieties (Youngs modulus and density) and mode

shape on air damping and spring coefficients of a MEM resonator.

(a) Effect of the beam length on the resonator (b) Effect of the beam length on the air damping
frequency. coefficient.

(c) Effect of the beam length on the air stiffness (d) Effect of the beam length on the air quality
coefficient. factor.

Figure 6.1: Effect of the beam length on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

89
 Length: The impact of the resonator length on its performance under the

ambient pressure is shown in Fig. 6.1. The resonance frequency and air stiffness

coefficient decreases with the resonator length. Increasing the resonator length

leads to more air squeezed out of the gap which in turn results in a higher

damping coefficient is found. In addition, a long resonator has lower stiffness,

and lower stored energy, leading to quality factor degradation. Since a longer

resonators have a lower resonance, this gives air a higher chance to escape from

the gap. Consequently, lower air compression is evident as shown in Fig. 6.1.

Width: The resonance frequency is absolutely independent of the beam width

as shown in Fig. 6.2. Increasing the beam width leads to increased beam stiff-

ness and mass,leaving the resonance frequency unaffected. On the contrary,

increasing the beam width lowers the Q-factor as shown in Fig. 6.2. As the

width increases the amount of the air squeezed out of the resonator as well lead-

ing to increased damping. Moreover, increasing the width reduces the chance

of air escaping from the gap. This results in higher air compression for the wide

resonators.

Thickness: The effect of the beam thickness on the resonator performance

is summarized in Fig. 6.3. Resonance frequency is linearly proportional to

the beam thickness. A thicker beam has a higher stiffness which leads to less

interaction with the surrounding air. Therefore, a thick resonators has a lower

damping coefficient. At the same time, thicker resonators resonate at lower

frequencies which increases the chance for air to escape from the gap, leading

to higher air compression. Finally the stiffer resonators have a higher stored

90
 (a) Effect of the beam width on the reso- (b) Effect of the beam width on the air
nance frequency. damping coefficient.

(c) Effect of the beam width on the air stiff- (d) Effect of the beam width on the quality
ness coefficient. factor.

Figure 6.2: Effect of the beam width on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

91
 energy and lower damping coefficients. This is translated into higher Q-factor

for thicker resonators.

(a) Effect of the beam thickness on the resonator (b) Effect of the beam thickness on the air
frequency. damping coefficient.

(c) Effect of the beam thickness on the air stiff- (d) Effect of the beam thickness on the air
ness coefficient. quality factor.

Figure 6.3: Effect of the beam thickness on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

Gap height: Gap height highly affects the resonator performance. Narrower

gaps result in higher air damping coefficients as given in Fig. 6.4. For narrow

gaps, high velocity gradients are found across the gap. This means that more

energy is dissipated in overcoming the friction forces between the air layers of

92
 various velocities.

However, narrow gap does not provide enough space for the air to escape. Thus,

as shown in Fig. 6.4, the air spring constant drops drastically with increasing

the gap height.

(a) Effect of the gap height on the resonator (b) Effect of the gap height on the air damping
frequency. coefficient.

(c) Effect of the gap height on the air damping (d) Effect of the gap height on the air damping
coefficient. coefficient.

Figure 6.4: Effect of the gap height on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

93
 Youngs modulus Increasing the Youngs modulus result in a stiffer resonator.

Accordingly, increased Youngs modulus yields higher resonance frequency and

lower damping coefficient shown in Fig. 6.5. This leads to increased Q-factor

as depicted in Fig. 6.5d. Since stiffer structures resonate at higher frequencies,

more air compression takes place with increasing resonators Youngs modulus.

(a) Effect of the Youngs modulus on the res- (b) Effect of the Youngs modulus on the air
onator frequency. damping coefficient.

(c) Effect of the Youngs modulus on the air (d) Effect of the Youngs modulus on the air
damping coefficient. damping coefficient.

Figure 6.5: Effect of the Youngs modulus on the air viscous friction with the res-
onator.

94
 Density: The influence of the density on the resonator response is shown in

Fig. 6.6. Denser resonators result in lower resonance frequency. This enables

air to squeeze out of the gap. Thus, the air spring constant decreases with

the beam material density, as given in Fig. 6.6. Denser resonators stores more

energy, leading to a higher Q-factor resonators.

Mode shape: The influence of the beam mode shape on air damping is also

illustrated in Fig. 6.7 for the first four resonance modes of DCB resonators.

The calculated air damping based on the equation of motion for different mode

shapes is given in Fig. 6.8. Higher modes show lower damping due to the

smaller displacement generated with these modes. This returns to the smaller

displacements shown by higher modes. Thus, lower squeeze film damping is

expected. Therefore, due to small displacement, the motion detection of the

resonator is more difficult at higher modes.

In conclusion, a higher Q-factor can be achieved by considering shorter, narrower,

stiffer and lighter resonator with larger air gaps. For our case, imec process technol-

ogy is based on SiGe as structural material due to its compatibility with the CMOS

process integration and its superior mechanical and electrical proprieties. Therefore,

scaling down the resonator dimensions is a practical approach given the process tech-

nology constraints. This leads us to investigate the performance of NEM instead

of MEM resonator. However, a narrower gap is needed to enable detection of the

vibration for the NEM resonator vibration as we are only interested in capacitive

transduction. Figure 6.8 shows the displacement and the pressure distribution ex-

erted on the lower face of the resonator for the first four Eigenmodes where the red

95
(a) Effect of the beam density on the resonance (b) Effect of the beam density on the air damping
frequency. coefficient.

(c) Effect of the beam density on the air stiffness (d) Effect of the beam density on the quality fac-
coefficient. tor.

Figure 6.6: Effect of the beam density on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

96
 (a) Effect of the mode shape on the reso- (b) Effect of the mode shape on the air damp-
nance frequency. ing coefficient.

(c) Effect of the mode shape on the air (d) Effect of the mode shape on the quality
stiffness coefficient. factor.

Figure 6.7: Effect of the mode shape on the air viscous friction with the resonator.

97
Figure 6.8: Numerical and analytical computed quality factor and resonance fre-
quency for different modes of DCB resonators.The first column is the resonator dis-
placement and the second one represents the pressure distribution across the bar. The
red and blue colors denote the maximum and minimum values respectively. Tables
show the match between numerical and analytical computations.

98
and blue color represents the maximum and minimum value, respectively. As indi-

cated in the figure,the analytical and COMSOL results agree within 95% for different

DCB resonance modes .

6.3 NEM resonators

In this section, we show the impact of the intermolecular forces represented in

Casimir and vdW force on the harmonic response of NEM resonator, based on the

model developed in section 5.3. The resonator is studied through three cases: Static

response, Linear harmonic response and nonlinear harmonic response.

6.3.1 Static Analysis and Response

In order to investigate the influence of the intermolecular force on these pull in

parameters, Eqs. (5.31-5.32) are solved simultaneously. These equations have (n+1)th

order. Then, it is impossible to find the closed form solutions of this equation. Using

perturbation methods, closed form expressions can be evaluated. However, we solved

these equation numerically.

Figure 6.9a shows the effect of the intermolecular force on the pull-in voltage. At zero

intermolecular parameter ( = 0), we get the normal pull-in voltage (VP I ). Increasing

the value of the intermolecular force reduces the pull-in voltage, reaching zero for full

intermolecular parameter ( = 1). The variation of the pull-in displacement (xP I )

with intermolecular parameter is shown in Fig. 6.9a. In absence of intermolecular

forces ( = 0 ), the pull-in displacement is one third of the gap (d0 ). This value

decreases to one fourth of the gap for full vdW forces and one fifth for the full

Casimir forces.

Moreover, the intermolecular forces limit the dynamic range of the resonator, shift

99
the rest position at zero DC voltage and decrease the static pull-in displacement. The

rest and pull-in displacements converge with increasing as seen in Fig. 6.9b. This

shows that the dynamic range decreases with increased and ultimately reaches zero

when = 1.

(a) Variation of the pull-in parameters versus (b) Reduction of the dynamic range of the
the intermolecular parameter. resonator in the presence of the intermolec-
ular force.

Figure 6.9: Effect of the intermolecular forces on the pull-in parameters of NEM
resonators.

6.3.2 Linear Harmonic Analysis and Response

Before examining the NEM response under linear harmonic condition, the nonlin-

earity of the intermolecular forces with the resonator displacement leads to a spring

softening effect. This effect modifies the resonator overall stiffness, in turn, it changes

the resonance frequency as described Eq. (5.41).

Figure 6.10a shows the influence of the intermolecular force on the resonance fre-

quency under different applied voltages. The higher the intermolecular parameter,

the lower the resonance frequency is, reaching zero for the pull-in case. Moreover, this

100
figure could also be used to quantify the effect of the intermolecular force through

measuring the resonance frequency if the zero intermolecular resonance frequency is

known. Also, it is noted that Casimir force results in more frequency shift compared

to the vdW interaction.

Figure 6.10b shows the effect of the applied voltage on the resonance frequency for

different intermolecular parameters. As expected, increasing the applied voltage re-

duces the resonance frequency. It also reveals that the resonance frequency becomes

more sensitive to the applied bias voltage for higher intermolecular parameter.

(a) Resonance frequency shift versus the in- (b) Resonance frequency shift versus the
termolecular parameter under different DC applied voltage under different intermolec-
voltages. ular forces.

Figure 6.10: Effect of the spring softening effect introduced by the electrostatic and
the intermolecular forces on the resonance frequency of NEM resonators under linear
harmonic conditions.

6.3.3 Nonlinear Harmonic Analysis and Response

Lets now examine the impact of nonlinear stiffness terms, introduced by the nano-

forces nonlinear terms in Eq. (5.34-5.36) on the harmonic response of NEM resonator

101
under large vibration amplitude conditions.

The nano-force nonlinearities contribute to limiting the critical amplitude for the

resonator. Based on Eq. (5.52), the normalized critical amplitude xc for the NEM

resonator under different and V is plotted in Fig. 6.11 assuming zero mechanical

nonlinearity. Increasing reduces xc at constant V . At low V , the nano-forces

nonlinear terms are considered as the main factor limiting the vibration amplitude

for the resonator. Also, the critical amplitude is more impacted by the Casimir in-

teraction than the vdW case.

Figure 6.12 shows the effect of the intermolecular force on the harmonic response of

(a) Effect of the intermolecular forces on (b) Effect of the electrostatic forces on
the resonator critical amplitude under the resonator critical amplitude under
different voltage applied. different intermolecular forces.

Figure 6.11: Effect of the intermolecular spring softening effect on the resonator
critical amplitude.

the resonator assuming a constant quality factor of 1000 (Q=1000). The normalized

displacement is plotted against the normalized driving frequency as described by Eq.

102
(5.47). Two cases are considered, without intermolecular force (solid) and with inter-

molecular force (dashed) under a normalized DC applied voltage of 0.2 for different

normalized AC voltages. It can be seen that the intermolecular higher stiffness com-

ponents result in a lower critical displacement, larger dynamic displacement and a

higher frequency shift. The slight increase in the dynamic displacement is attributed

to the smaller static gap given by the high intermolecular forces. This increased

displacement results in a more dynamic electrostatic force for the same AC applied

voltage.

(a) Harmonic response of the NEM resonator (b) Harmonic response of the NEM resonator in
in the presence of the Casimir forces under dif- the presence of the vdW forces under different
ferent AC applied voltage. AC applied voltage.

Figure 6.12: Harmonic response of NEM resonators under the influence of electrostatic
and intermolecular forces.

6.3.4 Casimir Versus van der Waals force

The Casimir and the vdW forces depend on the nature of the surface and the gap

height. However, at certain gaps, the resonator can be operated between Casimir

and vdW as shown by the continuous transition between Casimir and vdW reported

103
in [125]. To have a better understanding of this region, we calculated the resonance

frequency and the critical amplitude variation upon the transition from Casimir (n=4)

to vdW (n=3) as shown in Fig. 6.13 under a normalized DC voltage of V* = 0.4 and

quality factor Q = 1000.

Considering the resonance frequency, the Casimir force has higher impact relative

to the vdW force. At low intermolecular forces ( = 0.2), the resonance frequency

is constant during the transition. However, at higher intermolecular parameters,

more resonance frequency shift is expected. For the critical amplitude, Casimir force

also has a higher impact. However, at low intermolecular parameters ( = 0.2),

a larger reduction in the critical amplitude is found compared to the case of high

intermolecular parameters ( = 0.2).

(a) Resonance frequency variation on the (b) Critical amplitude variation on the
transition from the Casimir force (n = 4) transition from the Casimir force (n =4)
to the vdW force (n=3). to the vdW force (n =3).

Figure 6.13: Transition from the Casimir to the vdW force.

104
 Table 6.1: Effect of intermolecular forces on different structures.

Structures Fres [M Hz] K[N/m] d0 [nm] inter f0 [Hz] xc (%)
Disk [12] 455 2.3e7 90 1.6e-7 12 -2.3e-3
Square Ext. [126] 13.1 1.6e7 750 1.1e-11 2e-5 -1.2e-5
BAW [14] 14 2.9e5 950 1.2e-11 3e-5 -1.4e-5
Free Beam [127] 30 2.7e4 160 1.3e-6 6.3 -5.7e-4
DCB [128] 27 1e3 300 6.5e-5 300 -0.19
DCB [70] 0.85 51 100 6e-2 8600 -25.7

6.3.5 Study Case

The model developed in this chapter has been applied to several N / MEM struc-

tures from literature to determine the dimensions at which the intermolecular forces

clearly appear. Table 6.1 shows such structures operating under given DC applied

voltage. The last structure, DCB, is a theoretical DCB with dimensions 100x20x4

m and a vertical transduction gap of 100 nm. These dimensions are selected to

demonstrate the impact of the intermolecular forces.

The intermolecular forces have shown a negligible impact on the harmonic response

of the resonator. This is returned to the high stiffness of the structure in the case

of bulk resonators and to small overall area with the driving electrode for cantilevers

and DCb resonators. For the theoretical DCB, the model predict (1%) shift in res-

onance frequency and (33%) decrease in the critical amplitude. This great impact

is returned mainly to its low stiffness (k = 51[N/m]) and large overlap area with the

electrode.

Despite the slight impact of the intermolecular forces on most current resonators, we

expect that with technology advances in nano-fabrication the intermolecular forces

will play a crucial role on the behavior of NEM resonators.

105
6.4 Meta-material BAW resonators

Based on the modeling results shown in the previous sections, flexural resonators

on micro scale suffer from low Q-factor and low surface area to volume ratio. Scaling

the resonator dimensions, improves its bio-performance. However, their vibration

detection becomes more difficult along with the increased impact of nano-scale forces.

This push us to the third candidate represented in MEMA BAW resonators. As

discussed in section 5.4, COMSOL simulations are performed to extract the MEMA

bar electrical equivalent circuit to predict its performance as a biosensor. In this

section, we show the COMSOL simulation results, verified using experimental setup

presented in Chapter 4. Figure 6.14 shows the harmonic response of MEMA based

bar resonator with a perforation density (ef f = 0.68) under different DC biasing

voltages (60, 70, 80 V ).

Figure 6.14: Harmonic response of MEMA resonator under the influence of different
DC voltages.

106
6.4.1 Modeling

The equivalent RLC circuit is used to model the full harmonic response of the

MEMA BAW resonator. We studied the influence of adding a regular pattern of

square holes with different densities on the RLC equivalent circuit component under

ambient pressure operating conditions. The equivalent circuit was extracted both

numerically and experimentally, then, the resonance frequency (fres ), quality factor

(Q) and motional resistance (Rmotional ) were calculated.

Resonance frequency

Adding square perforations within the resonator mechanical layer modifies the

resonator mechanical properties. Figure 6.15 shows the relation between the effective

Youngs modulus and Poisson ratio and the effective resonator density (ef f = (1

areahole /areatotal )). Increasing the perforation density, both Youngs modulus and

Poisson ratio decreases. Knowing the effective mechanical parameters Eef f and ef f ,

the resonance frequency for the MEMA based BAW bar with width W = 110m can

be evaluated by Eq. (6.1) as depicted in Fig. 6.15c :

s
1 Eef f
fres = (6.1)
2W ef f

Air damping

Based on the COMSOL layout in Fig. 5.6, the air velocity distribution surround-

ing the bar for different perforation size and pitch (p = 5m) are calculated, as shown

in Fig. 6.16. The higher perforated resonators have a lower air displacement under

107
 (a) Variation of the Youngs Modulus ver- (b) Variation of the Poisson ratio versus the
sus the effective density. effective density.

(c) Variation of the resonance frequency versus

the effective density.

Figure 6.15: Variation of the mechanical properties and resonance frequency with the
resonator effective density calculated though the static pull test.

108
the same applied force. Thus, wider perforated bars suffer from higher viscous damp-

ing than the normal full bars. On the other hand, adding the perorations reduce the

contact surface area between the resonator and the surrounding air. In turn, the slide

film damping is lowered. Figure 6.17 shows the pressure distribution along the gap.

Figure 6.16: COMSOL simulation for the air velocity surrounding the MEMA based
resonator.

Higher perforated bars exhibit lower pressure along the gap and in turn lower squeeze

film damping.

We calculated the harmonic response for both families of MEMA resonators to com-

pletely model air damping effect including both slide and squeeze film damping cases.

The quality factor is extracted from the harmonic response of the resonator. Figure

6.18 shows the drop of the Q-factor with increasing the perforation size for a pitch of

5 m. The Q-factor degradation is attributed to drop in the energy stored within the

resonator and the increased air losses within the perforations of the resonator (more

air squeezing).

109
Figure 6.17: COMSOL simulation of the air pressure along the transduction gap of
the MEMA based resonator.

Figure 6.18: Air limited Q-factor of the meta-material based resonator versus the
perforation size with a perforation pitch of 5 m, computed numerically and experi-
mentally.

110
Motional resistance

Based on the COMSOL model discussed in Fig. 5.7, the motional resistance

versus the DC applied voltage for different perforation densities (ef f = 1.0 0.68)

are estimated as shown in Fig. 6.19. The motional resistance is almost unaffected

Figure 6.19: Motional resistance variation versus the DC applied voltage for different
perforation densities computed experimentally and numerically.

by perforations (ef f = 1.0 0.68). This is explained in the light of Eq. (5.56)

that the decline in the resonator mechanical prosperities completely compensates for

the resonators Q-factor drop. As shown in Table 6.2, the validity of the numerical

computations of the motional resistance has been verified experimentally.

111
Table 6.2: Extracted harmonic response parameters for MEM BAW bar type res-
onators
Specification Full bar Perforated bar
Frequency [MHz] - Model 25.4 21.5
Frequency [MHz] - Measured 24.8 20.4
Q-factor - Model 13370 6700
Q-factor - Measured 13820 6300
Motional resistance - Model [MOhm] 0.88 0.9
Motional resistance- Measured [MOhm] 0.81 0.87

RLC extraction

Using COMSOL simulations and Eq. (6.2), the harmonic response is evaluated

based on circuit shown in Fig. 6.20.

r r
1 1 1 L
fres = , Q= (6.2)
2 LC Rmotinal C

where L and C are the equivalent inductance and capacitance for the bar resonator

respectively.

Figure 6.20: Equivalent circuit for which the equivalent parameters are extracted.

Table 6.2 summarizes the extracted harmonic response parameters computed nu-

merically. The results are verified experimentally using the setup discussed in Chapter

112
Figure 6.21: Harmonic response of the MEMA resonator under a DC voltage of 50
V computed numerically and experimentally.

4. A good match is seen for Q-factor and motional resistance between numerical and

experimental results. Except for the resonance frequency, there is a slight deviation

which is still within the tolerance range of the fabrication process.

Figure 6.21 shows the harmonic response of the MEMA based BAW bar type resonator

using RLC circuit, extracted both numerically and experimenally for DC biasing of

50 V under ambient pressure condition. Adding perforation leads to a decrease in the

resonance frequency, Q-factor and almost unaffected motional resistance.

6.4.2 Bio-sensitivity

Maximizing the bio-sensitivity for the N / MEM resonator is considered the ulti-

mate goal for this thesis. Firstly, we study the impact of BAW bar type thickness on

the resonator bio-performance.

Based on Eq. (5.59), thicker resonators have a lower bio-sensitivity due to their

113
increased mass. Accordingly, thinner resonators are favoured for bio-sensing applica-

tions. However, thin resonators suffer from high motional resistance upon capacitive

transduction based on Eq. (5.56).

For the MEMA resonators, highly perforated thick resonator becomes totally inde-

pendent of the bar thickness as shown in Fig. 6.22. Increasing the bar thickness leads

to increased resonator mass that is totally compensated by the increase surface area

leading to constant surface area to volume ratio as given in Eq. (5.60). Therefore,

MEMA based BAW resonators offer a highly sensitive low motional resistance res-

onators which isnt the case for typical BAW bar type resonators.

Table 6.3 shows the computed sensitivity for the two families of BAW resonators

Figure 6.22: Bio-sensitivity variation versus the perforation density with a pitch =
2.5 m and different thickness.

being considered. It can be seen that the bio-sensitivity is enhanced with around 5

times, when MEMA resonators are used, compared to the standard solid bars. Also,

114
 Table 6.3: Bio-sensitivity for MEMA resonators.
Bio-sensitivity Full bars Perforated bars
Analytical 27 133
Numerical 28.3 136

there is matching between the numerical and analytical results that validates the pre-

vious equations.

Increasing the perforation density increases the resonator surface area to volume ratio

which improves the resonator bio-sensitivity. However, bar perforation degrades the

resonator Q-factor. Thus, an optimization procedure is needed for maximizing the

bio-performance of the resonator based on FOM defined in Eq. (5.65).

Figure 6.23 shows the variation of FOM versus the perforation size for three distinct

perforation pitches: 2.5 , 5 and 10 m respectively. As seen in the figures, for each

perforation pitch, there is an optimum hole size that should be selected for reducing

the lower bound of the mass detection. Upon increasing the perforation size beyond

this optimum value, the Q-factor degradation dominates the surface areca enhance-

ment and mass reduction. This leads to an increase of the minimum limit despite the

improvement of the concentration sensitivity.

On the other hand, smaller perforations have a lower surface area to volume ratio

limiting the overall performance of the resonator. However, for certain perforation

pitch, i.e. greater than 10 m, the non-perforated bar is the optimum design for the

bio-sensing despite its lower surface area to volume ratio.

Figure 6.24 shows the effect of varying the perforation pitch on the (FOM). The max-

imum FOM for different hole sizes is selected for a given perforation pitch. Higher

115
 (a) (b) (c)

Figure 6.23: FOM of MEMA resonators versus the hole size for different perforation
pitch.

perforation pitch with high perforation size is the best choice for enhancing the con-

centration sensitivity. This leads us to the fact that using the porous material as a

building material for the resonator may yield the best bio-sensing performance.

Figure 6.24: FOM for different perforation pitches of MEMA BAW bar type resonator.

116
6.4.3 Experimental verification of bio-sensitivity

In the previous section, we have shown numerically and analytically that the per-

forating bar resonators with a certain size and pitch highly increase the resonator

bio-sensitivity. Experimental measurement was conducted to verify our computa-

tions.

Using the functionlization steps and measurement setup discussed in Chapter 4, the

resonator bio-sensitivity is measured for both perforated and solid BAW bar res-

onators. Figure 6.25 shows the resonance frequency variation for the two families

of the bar type BAW resonators before and after being exposed to the DNA. Using

the definition of bio-sensitivity in Eq. (5.58), the bio-sensitivity of the MEMA based

resonator is 5 times higher than that of the full bar resonators. This increases in

frequency shift with the perforation is attributed to the enhanced surface area to

volume ratio offered by the MEMA bar resonators, which allows more molecules to

be attached to the bar surface.

6.5 New Designs

Enhancing the bio-sensitivity of the N / MEM based resonator is of prime impor-

tance towards building a commercially viable biosensor. Levering the knowledge and

understanding developed during the analytical and numerically study of the BAW res-

onators presented throughout this work, we adopted a strategy based on enhancing

the surface area to volume ratio of the resonator to achieve the desired improvement

in bio-sensitivity. As mentioned in the previous section, a large increase (5 times)

in the resonators bio-sensitivity was obtained by using square perforated bar type

BAW resonators, compared to the typical solid bar type BAW resonators.

117
 (a)

(b)

118
Figure 6.25: Resonance frequency shift on exposure to DNA (a) Non-perforated bars
(b) Perforated bars.
6.5.1 MEM resonators

In this section, we present new designs for BAW and flexural resonators that

offered much higher surface area than the simple square perforated resonators. We

used fractal cells, as those shown in Fig. 6.26 as the building unit for the bar. These

fractal unit cell designs lead to lower mass and a range of surface area to volume ratio

all of which are much higher than the previously used simple square as given in table

6.4.

(a) Zeroth order unit (b) First order unit cell (c) Second order unit cell
cell

Figure 6.26: Fractal unit cells used for the resonators.

Table 6.4: Surface area to volume ratio for different order of fractal cells.
Unit Cell Surface area to volume ratio
th
0 Order Cell 12.23 [m1 ]
1st Order Cell 96.11 [m1 ]
nd
2 Order Cell 160.55 [m1 ]

The proposed new designed structures are divided into two groups: flexural and

bulk resonators. Each group has four types of devices: solid (without perforations),

119
normally perforated (uniform square holes), fractal first order and fractal second order

based resonators.

The flexural resonators group include cantilevers and DCBs with various length and

width. Figure 6.27 shows the layout of four distinct types of out of plane DCB

resonators. They are capacitively transduced through a bottom electrode.

(a) Double clamped beam resonators with normal (b) Double clamped beams with a first order
square perforations. fractal structures.

(c) Double clamped beams with a second order (d) Double clamped beams with a second or-
fractal structures. der fractal structures.

Figure 6.27: DCB resonators with different fractal cells. The inset is a magnification
of the perforation shape on the beam. The designation of the 1,2,3 and 4 labeled
structures are given in Table 6.5

Table 6.5: Pad designation for DCB resonators.

Pad 1 2 3 4
Function Electrode Beam Electrode Beam

120
 The second group consists of BAW bar type resonators. These are bar type exten-

sional resonators suspended in free space by means of T-support and are capacitively

transduced through a horizontal gap of 500 nm. We have four families of the BAW

bars with different fractal cells. They are fabricated from SiGe with a structural layer

thickness of 4 m and a sacrificial layer of 3 m.

Figure 6.28 shows the layout of the BAW bar type resonators. The anchor dimensions

for each structure are selected to match the acoustic impedance between the resonator

and the substrate, hence improving the resonator Q-factor [22]. Each resonator shape

has six replicas with different support length around their optimum values to test its

susceptibility to failure during the fabrication process.

(a) Non - perforated (b) Perforated bar (c) Fractal first order (d) Fractal second or-
bar type BAW res- type BAW resonator. based bar type BAW der based bar type
onator. resonator. BAW resonator

Figure 6.28: Capacitive extensional BAW resonators with different unit cells. The
inset is a magnification of the perforation shape on the beam. The designation of the
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 labeled structures are given in Table 6.6

121
 Table 6.6: Pad designation for the extensional bar resonator.
Pad 1 2 3 4 5 6
Function Bar Electrode Bar Bar Electrode Bar

The strategy of relying on fractal structures to enhance the biosensor sensitivity

was also extended beyond capacitively coupled resonators discussed earlier to electro-

statically actuated piezo-resistivity sensed resonators to increase the resonator output

signal to noise ratio. The resonator consists of two rectangular bars connected by

means of thin beam springs [129]. The positioning and anchoring of the springs are

accurately selected to minimize the anchor losses and slightly affect the mode shape.

The layouts for the piezo-resistive resonator with different fractal cells are shown in

Fig. 6.29.

BAW bar resonators operated in Lame-mode resonators exhibit lower thermo-

mechanical noise compared to the extensional mode [44]. Therefore, an increase

in the dynamic range of the lame mode resonator is expected, which is beneficial

for use as a biosensor. We considered designing lame mode bar type resonator and

comparing its performance to the extensional mode. In that regard, we used three

different schemes for anchoring the lame mode resonator: T - support, I - support

and the stem support. Figure 6.30 shows the layout for the lame mode resonators

with different anchoring schemes.

Based on the aforementioned new designs, wafers are currently being manufactured

at imec.

122
 (a) Non-perforated piezo-resistive extensional (b) Perforated piezo-resistive extensional bar
bar type BAW resonators. type BAW resonators.

(c) Fractal first order piezo-resistive extensional (d) Fractal second order piezo-resistive exten-
bar type BAW resonators. sional bar type BAW resonators.

Figure 6.29: Piezo-resistive bar resonators with different fractal cells.

(a) I - Supported resonator. (b) T - Supported resonator. (c) Stem - supported res-
onator.

Figure 6.30: Different anchoring schemes for lame mode resonators. The designation
of the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 labeled structures are given in Table 6.7

123
 Table 6.7: Pad designation for lame mode bar resonator.
Pad 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Function Bar Elect1 Elect2 Bar Bar Elect3 Elect4 Bar

6.5.2 NEM Designs

Scaling down to NEM dimensions, we considered flexural resonators ( cantilevers

and DCBs). The new designs are divided into three main groups based on the trans-

duction mechanism. The first group is capacitively actuated and capacitively sensed,

the second group is capacitively actuated piezo-resistivity sensed and the last group

is thermally actuated and piezo-restively sensed. Our main goal is to identify the best

transduction mechanism for the resonator.

The capacitive transduction is based on measuring the current accompanied with

the capacitance variation due to the resonator motion. Detecting the resonator

motion capacitively is difficult due to the small dimensions of the resonators (<

4000nmx200nmx100nm) requiring sophisticated measurement setup [130]. Besides,

the high frequency operation of the resonator (> 100M Hz) leads to an increase in

the feed-through current over the motional current, degrading the resonator signal to

noise ratio. Therefore, we developed an dual port inter-digitated design [18]. Figure

6.31 shows two different designs for NEM flexural resonator, the typical design with

a single electrode for sensing and actuation.and the interdigitated design with two

sperate electrodes, one for sensing and the other for actuation. The inter-digitated

design reduce the overlap surface area between the electrodes and the resonator which

reduce the overlap capacitance and in turn the feed-through current. Also, we used

124
arrays to facilitate the detection of the resonator motion. Different number of ele-

ments are considered for the arrays: 2 - 8 -16. Within the arrays, we used different

electrode configuration for the sensing and actuation. Figure 6.32 shows the layout

for the array of NEM resonators designed for fabrication at imec.

Concerning the second group, the structures are capacitively actuated by apply-

(a) Typical NEM resonator with a single (b) A modified NEM resonator with sepa-
electrode for sensing and actuation. rate electrodes, one for sensing and the other
for actuation.

Figure 6.31: Different electrode configurations for NEM cantilevers.

ing a given voltage. Piezo-resistivity material is used to detect the resonator motion

by passing current through the resonator and calculate its variation. The motion

of the beam results in expansion and contraction changing the resonator electrical

resistance. For this group, we also used an array of resonators connected in series to

enhance the resonator signal to noise ratio.

The third group contains thermally actuated resonators. The resonator is actuated by

passing a current in it. This current heats the resonator and generates temperature

gradient across the resonator, causing it to vibrate. The resonators piezo-resistivity

material is used for sensing the resonator motion.

Similar to the MEMS designs, we used fractal based cells to increase the resonator

surface area to volume ratio. We also used arrays to increase the overlap surface

125
between the resonator and the electrode.

Figure 6.32: Array of fractal first order based DCB resonators.

6.6 Sensing Circuit

As discussed in section 5.5, we designed, using H-spice simulations, the readout

circuit for the solid bar resonator. Using COMSOL simulations, we extracted the

equivalent Rs , Ls , Cs and Cp circuit components for Hspice simulation.

In this section, we show the simulation results for the sensing circuit, including the

DC, AC and transient analysis. Moreover, we study the effect of increasing the

resonator mass, circuit parasitic on the system overall response. Figure 6.33 shows

the DC transfer characteristics for the amplifier using the transistor dimensions given

in table 6.8 . The operating voltage are 50 V and 2 V for the DC and AC biasing

voltages. The transistor dimensions are selected to achieve maximum gain around

zero DC operating point. Figures 6.34 and 6.35 show the frequency and transient

response for the readout circuit, respectively. On proper selecting the DC operating

126
Figure 6.33: H-spice simulated DC transfer characteristics of the readout circuit.

Figure 6.34: H-spice simulated frequency response of the full system.

127
Figure 6.35: H-spice simulated transient response of the readout circuit on driving
the resonator with a sinusoidal signal.

points on the gate, we sweep the resonator mass and check the circuit response as

given in Fig. 6.36 where the added mass reduce the resonance frequency.

Table 6.8: Aspect ratio for different transistors.

Transistor Aspect ratio
M1 W = 1.25 L = 0.25
M2 W = 0.5 L = 0.25
M3 W = 1.25 L = 0.25
M4 W = 50 L = 0.25

128
Figure 6.36: H-spice simulated Frequency response of readout circuit on varying the
resonator mass.

129
 CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORK

Our main aim in this thesis is to develop new mechanical devices with enhanced

bio-performance compared to the current bio-sensors. Firstly, we used 4 thick DCB

resonator for the bio-sensing. These beams show low Q-factor and low surface area to

volume ratio. We presented an analytical model for predicting the resonator response

under ambient pressure condition where the squeeze film damping dominates the res-

onator response. Using this model, we performed a parametric study on the resonator

dimensions and material properties to maximize the resonator bio-performance. The

results show that miniaturizing resonator dimensions increase its bio-sensitivity.

Making use of the technology advances, we designed and model nano-resonators with

a thickness of 50 nm and length of few micron. Within the nano - scale regime, the

resonator vibration detection becomes more difficult, especially with the increased

impact of nano-scale forces, represented in Casimir and vdW. We presented a SDOF

lumped model to study the impact of the nonlinearity introduced by the intermolecu-

lar forces and accurately predict its behaviour. A decrease in the pull-in parameters is

found along with a reduction in both the resonance frequency and the critical ampli-

tude. We have also shown the intermolecular forces result in a reduction of the energy

storage capability of NEM resonators. The model is applied to different resonators

130
from literature, showing a negligible impact on stiff resonators but a significant im-

pact on the low stiffness DCB study cases, where, the intermolecular forces lead to 1%

resonance frequency shift and 33% reduction of critical amplitude. Despite the slight

impact of the intermolecular forces on most current resonators, we expect that with

technology advances in nano-fabrication the intermolecular forces will play a crucial

role on the behavior of NEM resonators.

Flexural resonator such as cantilevers and DCBs suffer from lower surface area to

volume ratio and Q-factor under ambient pressure condition. This push us to go for

BAW resonator due to its higher Q-factor.

As our last candidate, we designed, modeled and characterized MEMA based BAW

bar resonator where square perforations are included within the resonator mechani-

cal layer. These perforations increase the resonator surface area to volume ratio and

reduce its mass. Numerical simulations were performed to predict the resonator har-

monic response. The equivalent electrical circuit components were extracted and ver-

ified experimentally. We found that these perforations reduce the resonator Youngs

modulus and poisson ratio. Therefore, the resonance frequency is reduced with in-

creasing the perforation density. Similarly, the Q-factor decreases with the perforation

size under the ambient pressure conditions due to the increased air friction. However,

the motional resistance is still unaffected despite the Q-factor drop.

Analytical model was developed to predict the MEMA BAW resonators bio-sensitivity.

The model results were verified numerically by COMSOL simulations. Using this

model, we have shown, analytically, numerically and experimentally, that perforated

bar resonator (ef f = 0.68) has 5 times higher bio-sensitivity compared to the non-

perforated BAW resonator under the same footprint condition. Furthermore, we

131
developed an optimization scheme for maximizing the resonator bio-sensitivity for a

given perforation pitch.

These results show the importance of increasing the resonator surface area to vol-

ume ratio on the its bio-performance. Based on this conclusion, we designed new

resonators which include Koch fractal cells within its structural layer. These designs

offer higher surface area to volume ratio and higher Q-factor compared to the square

perforated MEMA BAW resonators. Currently, these structures are under fabrication

at imec 4 m and 50 nm SiGe platforms.

132
 LIST OF PUBLICATIONS

M. Zanaty, R. Jansen, V. Rochus, M. Abbas, A. Witvrouw, H.A.C Tilmans and

X. Rottenberg Influence of non linearity introduced by van der Waals force

on the harmonic behavior of NEM resonators, 23rd MME 2012 Conference,

Illemnau, Germany.

M. Zanaty, R. Jansen, V. Rochus, M. Abbas, A. Witvrouw, H.A.C Tilmans

and X. Rottenberg Influence of nonlinearity introduced by Casimir force on

the harmonic behavior of NEM resonators, 2nd Saudi imternational conference

2012, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

M. Zanaty, R. Jansen, V. Rochus, M. Abbas, A. Witvrouw, H.A.C Tilmans

and X. Rottenberg Influence of nonlinear inter molecular force on the har-

monic behavior of NEM resonators, 13th Conference EurosimE 2013, Warsaw,

Poland.

X. Rottenberg, M. Zanaty, A. Khaled, M. Raoof, R. Jansen, V. Cherman, K.

Jans, M. Abbas and A. Witvrouw, Meta-material based BAW resonator for

biosensing applications, submitted for sensors 2013, Baltimore, MD, USA.

133
 ACRONYMS

HCV Hepatitis C virus

WHO World health organization
LFA Lateral flow assays
ELISA Enzyme linked immunsoberent assays
NEM Nano-electromechanical
MEM Micro - electromechanical
BAW Bulk acoustic wave
vdW van der Waals
DOF Degree of freedom
DCB Double clamped beam
NS Navier Stokes
VNM Veijola numerical model
VCM Veijola compact model
MLM Mixed level model
PML Perfectly matched layer
HDS High damping substrate
MEMA Meta-material
SiGe Silicon Germanium
HDP High density plasma
CMP Chemical mechanical polishing
SiC Silicon Carbide
CVD Chemical vapour deposition
PCR Polymerase chain reaction
SPR Surface plasma resonance
WGM Whispering gallery mode
SHR single harmonic resonator
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid
PBS Phosphate buffer saline
BSA Bovine Serum Albumin
FOM Figure of merit
CMOS Complementary metal oxide semiconductor
SMR Suspended micro-channel resonator
POC Point of care
FEM Finite element modeling
134
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