Multiphysics Modeling of MEMS Devices0 pages

Multiphysics Modeling of MEMS Devices
This brieng is a summary of the webcast on October 24, 2013:
Multiphysics Modeling of MEMS Devices.

Introduction
There are many excellent
reasons to simulate
microelectromechanical
system (MEMS) devices.
For example, if you're
going to create a new
product or process, such
as a capacitive pressure
sensor, you'll rst want to
get the concepts right. The
most important decisions
are often made early in
the product development
cycle when multiphysics
simulation can give you the
valuable insight you need.
The benets of multiphysics
simulation can also extend
easily to the design and
optimization of a product
by reducing the time and
money spent on prototypes.
And, if you integrate
multiphysics simulation
with manufacturing and
quality assurance, you'll end
up with a product that's
much better understood
and better characterized.

Technical Overview
MEMS devices are incorporated in equipment that we use on a
day-to-day basis. The MEMS market is already more than a $10 billion
market, and projected to become double of that in the next ve years.
This rapid growth in the MEMS market is being driven by a variety of
applications catering to a host of industries.
For example, inkjet printer heads consist of microactuators. MEMS RF
lters are used in wireless devices including phones and GPS to isolate
communication signals within the desired operational frequency band
from signals outside that band. Digital projection systems use a large
array of MEMS micromirrors. In recent times, one of the biggest drivers
of the MEMS industry has been smartphones. In most smartphones,
when the orientation of the phone is changed, the video or picture
changes from portrait to landscape mode. Operations such as these
require information from a MEMS gyroscope. Home entertainment and
gaming products that rely on the movement of our arms or body posture
use a combination of MEMS accelerometers and gyroscopes to convert
the human motion into electrical signals that are then used to represent
the movement of our virtual self on-screen.

The design and simulation of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) is a unique
engineering discipline covering a variety of coupled physics, including
electromagnetic-structure, thermal-structure, or uid-structure interactions.

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