Rinaldi Awarded Patent for Integrated PCM Switches for Piezoelectric MEMS Resonators

rinaldi

ECE Associate Professor Matteo Rinaldi was awarded a patent for “Piezoelectric MEMS resonator with integrated phase change material switches.”


Abstract Source: USPTO

A monolithic integration of phase change material (PCM) switches with a MEMS resonator is provided to implement switching and reconfiguration functionalities. MEMS resonator includes a piezoelectric material to control terminal connections to the electrodes. The PCM is operable between an ON state and an OFF state by application of heat, which causes the phase change material to change from an amorphous state to a crystalline state or from a crystalline state to an amorphous state, the amorphous state and the crystalline state each associated with one of the ON state and the OFF state. A method of fabricating the MEMS resonator with phase change material is provided. A reconfigurable filter system using the MEMS resonators is also provided.

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Related Faculty: Matteo Rinaldi

Related Departments:Electrical & Computer Engineering