Clark T.-C. Nguyen (Advisor)

Research Advised by Professor Clark T.-C. Nguyen

Nguyen Group:  List of Projects | List of Researchers

BPN682: Strong I/O Coupled High-Q Micromechanical Filters

Robert A. Schneider
2015

This project improves the Q-factors of piezoelectric aluminum nitride (AlN) resonators by detaching their electrodes and suspending them at close distance. These devices are then used to make high-Q filters. "Capacitive-piezo" transduction, as it is called, allows for simultaneous low motional impedance (10-1000 Ohm) and high-Q (Q>8,800) performance for AlN resonators at VHF and UHF frequencies. The main advantage of these devices over capacitive resonators is their much stronger electromechanical coupling, e.g., Cx/C0>1.0%, enabling kt^2*Q figures of merit exceeding those of...

BPN707: Automated Passband Tuning of High-Order Microelectromechanical Filters

Henry G. Barrow
2015

This project aims to develop multi-resonator micromechanical electronic filters for use in communication systems requiring bandpass filters with sharp rolloffs and large stopband rejections. A complete analysis of the design, fabrication and testing of filters comprised of 2-8 micromechanical resonators coupled by flexural mode springs will establish a greater understanding this exciting MEMS device. In addition, the implementation of an automated tuning scheme will provide complete corrective control over the filter’s passband by negating the effects of fabrication error....

BPN534: Fully-Integrated Micromechanical Clock Oscillator

Henry G. Barrow
2015

This project aims to develop a fully integrated micromechanical clock oscillator which outperforms current quartz-based clock oscillators in terms of both size and cost. A 32-kHz micromechanical resonator with a temperature coefficient better than 10 ppm over the commercial temperature range will act as the oscillator's reference. In addition, this oscillator will utilize an integrated fabrication process above modern transistor circuits in order to minimize device footprint and production expense.

Project end date: 08/25/15

BPN734: Package-Derived Influences on Micromechanical Resonator Stability

Divya N. Kashyap
2015

Vacuum encapsulation of RF disk and beam resonators is necessary in order to maintain high Q and frequency stability. However, the difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion of the package material and the substrate lead to package induced stress. This project aims to explore the effects of this stress on the frequency response of the resonators using finite element analysis (FEA) software. Simulations performed on resonators packaged using conventional hermetic encapsulation techniques such as anodic and fusion bonding will be compared to that of an in situ packaging method...

BPN359: Micromechanical Disk Resonator-Based Oscillators

Thura Lin Naing
Tristan Rocheleau
2015

This project aims to build and test micromechanical-based frequency synthesizer components that meet or exceed the requirements of the GSM standard. Towards these goals, the project investigates short and long-term stability of MEMS-based oscillators, particularly, phase noise and acceleration sensitivity. In addition to providing a highly accurate, on-chip frequency reference, a fully-integrated oscillator can achieve greater stability (particularly acceleration sensitivity) and far less power consumption than any comparable off-chip oscillator. In the process of achieving a fully-...

BPN709: Tunable & Switchable Micromechanical RF Filters

Lingqi Wu
2015

This project aims to explore the use of on-chip capacitively transduced micromechanical resonators to realize RF filters with substantial size and performance advantages. With their extremely high quality factor in UHF range and strong coupling coefficient enabled by nanometer electrode-to-resonator gap spacings, capacitive-gap transduced micromechanical resonators should be able to realize reconfigurable RF channel select filters for future cognitive radio applications.

Project end date: 08/25/15

BPN435: A Micromechanical Power Amplifier

Wei-Chang Li
2015

This overall project aims to demonstrate methods for amplifying signals with higher efficiency compared to transistor circuitry using strictly mechanical means for ultra-low-power signal processing applications.

Project end date: 08/26/15

BPN676: Q-Boosted Optomechanical Oscillators

Turker Beyazoglu
Tristan Rocheleau
2015

This project aims to demonstrate Radiation Pressure driven Optomechanical Oscillators (RP-OMOs) with low phase noise and low power operation suitable for various applications in optical and RF communications. In particular, chip scale atomic clocks with low power consumption can be realized by replacing its power-hungry quartz-based microwave synthesizer with the proposed RP-OMO structure. The Q-boosted RP-OMO design approach of this work makes it possible to optimize both optical and mechanical design to simultaneously reduce the phase noise and threshold power of these oscillators...

BPN767: MEMS-Based Tunable Channel-Selecting Super-Regenerative RF Transceivers

Tristan Rocheleau
Thura Lin Naing
2015

This project aims to achieve low-power micromechanical-based tunable RF channel-selecting transceivers.

Project end date: 02/01/16

BPN433: A Micromechanical Power Converter

Ruonan Liu
2016

The overall goal of this project is to demonstrate a switched-mode power converter (e.g., a charge pump) using micromechanical switching elements that allow substantially higher voltages and potentially higher conversion efficiencies than transistor-switch based counterparts.

Project end date: 09/15/16