ELECTROSTATIC DAMPING OF MEMS DEVICES

摘要

The present invention generally relates to a method and apparatus for damping a plate electrode or switching element in a MEMS DVC device. A resistor disposed between a waveform controller and the electrodes of the MEMS DVC causes the voltage to increase while capacitance decreases during the time that the plate electrode is moving. Due to the increase in voltage and decrease in capacitance, the electrostatic force that resists the plate electrode movement away from an electrode increases, which in turn dampens the movement of the plate electrode.

主权项

1. A device, comprising:
a MEMS device comprising:
a plate electrode;the first electrode;a first dielectric layer disposed over the first electrode;a second electrode disposed opposite the first electrode; anda second dielectric layer disposed over the second electrode such that the plate electrode is movable between a first position in contact with the first dielectric layer, a second position in contact with the second dielectric layer, and a third position spaced from both the first and second dielectric layers; a waveform controller coupled to the first electrode and the second electrode; and a first resistor coupled between the first electrode and the waveform controller.