DEVELOPMENT OF A CARBON NANOTUBE-BASED ELECTROMECHANICAL RESONATOR: DEVICE MODELING

We present an electromechanical analysis of a novel double-sided driven carbon nanotube-based electromechanical resonator. The device comprises a cantilevered carbon nanotube actuated by two parallel-plate electrodes. Close-form analytical Solutions capable of predicting the steady-state resonation of the device and its resonant pull-in conditions are derived using an energy-based method. Our close-form formulas clearly reveal the complex relationship among the device geometry, the driving voltages, and the device's electromechanical dynamics. Our theoretical modeling shows that the stable steady-state spanning range of the resonating cantilever substantially exceeds the previously reported quasi-static pull-in limit for single-sided driven cantilevered nanotube-based NEMS, while the resonant pull-in voltage is only a small fraction of the quasi-static pull-in voltage. The unique behaviors of this novel device are expected to significantly enhance the applications of electromechanical resonators in the fields of signal processing, mass and force sensing, and chemical and molecule detection.