Invited Paper MN-ThM1
Mechanical Devices Incorporating Ultra-Thin Membranes

Thursday, October 21, 2010, 8:00 am, Room Santo Domingo

We have fabricated resonant mechanical structures from different membrane materials, including single-atom-thick graphene, and explored there function as sensors and devices. Silicon nitride can be lithographically fabricated to form electromechanical devices, and these structures have been widely studied, often in the form of cantilevers, as resonators and sensors. We have explored different geometries of silicon nitride as resonant mass sensors and also studied a new stress-based resonant device for sensing atmospheric gasses. With advances in processing methods we can now create similar devices from lithographically patterned graphene atomic sheets and monitor their mechanical response by methods similar to those used for surface patterned silicon nitride. The ability to integrate membranes into nanomechanical devices and systems creates the possibility for new sensing modalities and systems.