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Updated: Jul 2, 2026

Real-Time DC-dynamic Biasing Method for Switching Time Improvement in Severely Underdamped Fringing-field Electrostatic MEMS Actuators
Published on: August 16, 2014
Calculated sheath dynamics under the influence of an asymmetrically pulsed dc bias
1Department of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy, and the Center for Integrated Electronics, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180-3590, USA.
Abstract:
A one-dimensional model is used to describe the evolution of charged particles in a plasma sheath driven by an asymmetrically pulsed dc bias in the frequency range of 100 kHz to 10 MHz. The temporal-spatial evolution of the sheath is obtained through the simultaneous solution of Poisson's equations, the ionic fluid equations and a Boltzmann treatment of the electrons. Calculations are performed to demonstrate the effects ionic inertia and sheath restructuring have on the temporal dependence of current and energy of the ions arriving at the driven electrode. The temporal scale is observed to depend on the bulk density of the plasma. The pulse frequency, the pulse duty, and the capacitive coupling of the pulse to the driving electrode are varied to demonstrate the influence of these factors on the energy distribution of the ions extracted from the plasma to the electrode.
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