A physical quantity detection element includes a first base portion and a second base portion, a pair of vibrating beams extending between the first base portion and the second base portion, and a plurality of excitation electrodes provided in surfaces of the pair of vibrating beams. The vibrating beam includes a first region, a second region, and a third region. The first region is located between the second region and the first base portion, and the third region is located between the second region and the second base portion. The excitation electrode provided in the first region is disposed such that a distance from the first base portion is 2.5% or more and 12.3% or less of a total length of the vibrating beam, and the excitation electrode provided in the third region is disposed such that a distance from the second base portion is 2.5% or more and 12.3% or less of the total length of the vibrating beam.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a three-dimensionally structured member which can be made by a simpler process. The method for manufacturing a three-dimensionally structured member includes shaping a flat plate-shaped base member to produce a three-dimensionally structured member having a plurality of sections that are different from one another in thickness. The manufacturing method comprises: a mask formation step for forming a mask over the whole of at least one main surface of the base member; a mask removal step for removing a part of the mask; and an etching step for etching an exposed part of the base member wherein a combination of the mask removal step and the etching step is performed on the mask and the base member that correspond to each of the plurality of sections of the three-dimensionally structured member, in the order from thinnest to the thickest of thicknesses of the three-dimensionally structured members.

A micromechanical component for a sensor device. The component includes a first seismic mass, the first seismic mass displaced out of its first position of rest by a first limit distance into a first direction along a first axis mechanically contacting a first stop structure, and including a second seismic mass which is displaceable out of its second position of rest at least along a second axis, the second axis lying parallel to the first axis or on the first axis, and a second stop surface of the second seismic mass, displaced out of its second position of rest into a second direction counter to the first direction along the second axis, mechanically contacting a first stop surface of the first seismic mass adhering to the first stop structure.

A micromechanical z-inertial sensor. The micromechical z-inertial sensor includes at least one first seismic mass element; and torsion spring elements joined to the first seismic mass element. In each case, first torsion spring elements are connected to a substrate, and second torsion spring elements are connected to the first seismic mass element. A first and a second torsion spring element in each case is joined to one another with the aid of a lever element. The lever element is designed to strike against a stop element.

A method produces a micromechanical sensor element having a first electrode and a second electrode, wherein electrode wall surfaces of the first and the second electrodes are situated opposite one another in a first direction and form a capacitance, wherein one of the first electrode or the second electrode is movable in a second direction, in response to a variable to be detected, and a second one of the first electrode and the second electrode is fixed. The method includes producing a cavity in a semiconductor substrate, the cavity being closed by a doped semiconductor layer; producing the first and the second electrodes in the semiconductor layer, including modifying the electrode wall surface of the first electrode in order to have a smaller extent in the second direction than the electrode wall surface of the second electrode.

An inertial sensor module includes a first sensor, a second sensor, and a processing circuit. The first sensor detects, with a first sensitivity, a first physical quantity at a first detection axis and a second physical quantity at a second detection axis. The second sensor detects, with a second sensitivity different from the first sensitivity, a third physical quantity at a third detection axis with a higher accuracy than the first sensor. The processing circuit performs arithmetic processing that is processing of converting the first physical quantity and the second physical quantity at the first sensitivity and the third physical quantity at the second sensitivity into a first physical quantity, a second physical quantity, and a third physical quantity at a predetermined sensitivity.

There is provided a resonant sensor comprising: a substrate; a proof mass suspended from the substrate by one or more flexures to allow the proof mass to move relative to the frame along a sensitive axis; a first and a second resonant element connected between the frame and the proof mass; wherein the proof mass is positioned between the first and the second resonant element along the sensitive axis, and wherein the first and the second resonant elements have a substantially identical structure to one another; and drive and sensing circuitry comprising: a first electrode assembly coupled to first drive circuitry configured to drive the first resonant element in a first mode; a second electrode assembly coupled to second drive circuitry configured to drive the second resonant element in a second mode, different to the first mode; and a sensing circuit configured to determine a measure of acceleration.

The present invention discloses a three-axis accelerometer. The three-axis accelerometer comprises: a substrate; at least one anchor block fixedly disposed on the substrate; a first X-axis electrode, a second X-axis electrode, a first Y-axis electrode, a second Y-axis electrode, a first Z-axis electrode and a second Z-axis electrode all fixedly disposed on the substrate; a framework suspended above the substrate and comprising a first beam column, a second beam column disposed opposite to the first beam column and at least one connecting beam connecting the first beam column and the second beam column; a proof mass suspended above the substrate; and at least one elastic connection component configured to elastically connect to the at least anchor block, the connecting beam, and the proof mass. The three-axis accelerometer can realize high-precision acceleration detection on three axes with only one proof mass, and in particular, can provide a fully differential detection signal for the Z axis, thereby greatly improving detection precision.

A physical quantity sensor includes a physical quantity sensor element including a lid joined to a substrate to define a housing space in the inside and a physical quantity sensor element piece housed in the housing space and a circuit element bonded to the outer surface of the lid via an adhesive material. In the lid, an electrode is provided to extend from an inner wall of a through-hole, which pierces through the lid from the housing space to a surface on the opposite side of the side of the physical quantity sensor element piece and is sealed by a sealing member, to a peripheral edge of the through-hole at the surface on the opposite side. In a sectional view, thickness of a region at the peripheral edge of the electrode is smaller at the opposite side of the side of an opening of the through-hole than the opening side.

A self-calibration method for an accelerometer having a proof mass separated by a gap from a drive electrode and a sense electrode includes initializing the accelerometer to resonate, applying a first bias voltage to the sense electrode and a second bias voltage to the drive electrode to obtain a first scale factor, measuring a first acceleration over a first time interval, swapping the first bias voltage on the sense electrode with the second bias voltage previously on the drive electrode and the second bias voltage on the drive electrode with the first bias voltage previously on the sense electrode so that a bias voltage on the sense electrode is set to the second bias voltage and a bias voltage on the drive electrode is set to the second bias voltage to obtain a second scale factor, measuring a second acceleration over a second time interval, and calculating a true acceleration.