A Decoupling Design with T-Shape Structure for the Aluminum Nitride Gyroscope

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrical Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering

Background:

• Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) gyroscopes are crucial for inertial sensing.
• Achieving mode decoupling in MEMS gyroscopes is essential for reducing cross-axis sensitivity and improving accuracy.
• Existing designs often face challenges in isolating drive and sense modes, leading to performance limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and validate a novel T-shape decoupled structure for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) gyroscopes.
• To investigate the decoupling mechanism in a MEMS gyroscope utilizing piezoelectric aluminum nitride (AlN) film.
• To experimentally verify the effectiveness of the proposed design in minimizing the coupling between drive and sense modes.

Main Methods:

• A novel T-shape decoupled structure was designed for an AlN piezoelectric gyroscope.
• Finite element analysis (FEA) using COMSOL Multiphysics 5.2a was employed for structural simulation.
• Electrical properties were characterized using a dynamic signal analyzer to assess mode decoupling.

Main Results:

• The T-shape decoupled structure successfully minimized the coupling between drive and sense modes in the AlN piezoelectric gyroscope.
• Simulation and experimental results confirmed the working principle of the decoupling mechanism.
• The coefficient of orthogonal coupling was measured to be as low as 1.55%.

Conclusions:

• The novel T-shape decoupled structure effectively achieves mode decoupling in AlN piezoelectric MEMS gyroscopes.
• This design offers a promising solution for enhancing the performance and accuracy of inertial sensing devices.
• The validated decoupling mechanism paves the way for more robust and reliable MEMS gyroscope applications.