Structural dynamics of microsystems—current state of research and future directions

Microsystems or micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), as a newly emerged revolutionary enabling technology, has brought both opportunities and challenges to the field of structural dynamics in a different scale, owing primarily to its interdisciplinary nature of research and extremely small feature size. This paper seeks to present a comprehensive yet critical review on some of the major issues that need to be tackled in the successful realisation of microsystems, with an ultimate objective of further developing and improving the current design capabilities of these systems. The electro-mechanical coupling of typical MEMS devices is first defined and introduced, followed by an in-depth review of the various existing modeling and simulation techniques. Special requirements are discussed when typical MEMS devices need to be tested and existing vibration testing techniques are reviewed. Of particular interest to MEMS devices, structural damping has become a major issue affecting dynamic performance due to the various energy dissipation mechanisms involved. These damping mechanisms have been examined, together with methods developed to model them. Finally, conclusions are made on what have been achieved to date and future prospects of structural dynamics of Microsystems are identified with an intention to stimulate further concerted research in this important emerging area.