Detection of electromagnetic waves using charged MEMS structures
- ORNL
We describe micromechanical structures that are capable of sensing both electrostatic fields and electromagnetic fields over a wide frequency range. Typically, sensing of electromagnetic waves is achieved with electrically conducting antennas, which despite the many advantages do not exhibit high sensitivity over a broad frequency range. An important aspect of our present work is that, in contrast to traditional antennas, the dimensions of micromechanical oscillators sensitive to electromagnetic waves can be much smaller than the wavelength. We characterized the micromechanical oscillators and measured responses to electric fields and estimated the performance limits by evaluating the signal-to-noise ratio theoretically and experimentally.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC05-00OR22725
- OSTI ID:
- 1036182
- Journal Information:
- Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 100, Issue 10; ISSN 0003-6951
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Using Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) as Small Antennas
Radio-frequency electromagnetic field measurements for direct detection of electron Bernstein waves in a torus plasma