Investigation of the Charge Accumulation Based on Stiffness Variation of the Micro-Shell Resonator Gyroscope

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• Capacitive microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices face long-term charging issues in dielectric layers.
• This charge accumulation negatively impacts device repeatability and stability, particularly in high-performance applications.
• Accurate characterization methods are crucial for understanding and mitigating these charging effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the influence of charge accumulation on Micro-Scale Resonant Gyroscopes (MSRGs).
• To propose and validate a novel characterization method for charge accumulation based on stiffness variation.
• To investigate the effect of temperature on charge accumulation dynamics.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of charge accumulation effects on MSRG performance.
• Development of a characterization technique leveraging stiffness variation.
• Experimental investigation of charge accumulation in MSRGs, including temperature dependency.

Main Results:

• Charge accumulation in MSRGs was accurately characterized by monitoring variations in frequency split and stiffness.
• High temperatures were found to accelerate the charge accumulation process.
• Increased additional voltage due to charge accumulation was observed at elevated temperatures.

Conclusions:

• The proposed stiffness variation method provides accurate characterization of charge accumulation in capacitive MEMS devices.
• Temperature significantly influences the rate of charge accumulation, with higher temperatures accelerating the process.
• Understanding and controlling charge accumulation is vital for enhancing the long-term stability and reliability of MEMS devices.