Embodiments of the invention include a tunable radio frequency (RF) communication module that includes a transmitting component having at least one tunable component and a receiving component having at least one tunable component. The tunable RF communication module includes at least one piezoelectric switching device coupled to at least one of the transmitting and receiving components. The at least one piezoelectric switching device is formed within an organic substrate having organic material and is designed to tune at least one tunable component of the tunable RF communication module.

A method of forming a Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) includes forming a lower electrode on a first insulator layer within a cavity of the MEMS. The method further includes forming an upper electrode over another insulator material on top of the lower electrode which is at least partially in contact with the lower electrode. The forming of the lower electrode and the upper electrode includes adjusting a metal volume of the lower electrode and the upper electrode to modify beam bending.

Disclosed herein are techniques and systems for providing simulated, haptic feedback that is local to physical, non-actuating keys of a keyboard. A keyboard includes a plurality of non-actuating keys defined in a cover portion of the keyboard, a plurality of force-producing mechanisms coupled to a substrate underneath and adjacent the cover portion. The force-producing mechanisms may be positioned on suspended portions of the substrate that are mechanically isolated and arranged on the substrate to substantially correspond to a layout of the plurality of non-actuating keys. The force-producing mechanisms may be individually actuated to deflect the suspended portions of the substrate underneath the cover portion to create a tactile sensation for a user's finger that is local to a particular key. In some embodiments, the force-producing mechanisms are piezoelectric actuators.

A relay (1) includes a motor (20) and a primary electrical switch assembly (132).

Primary electrical switching attachment points (113) are switched by a moveable switching link (101) which is moved in and out of the switch on an switched off position axially by the motor (20) in response to electrical signals delivered to the coil (26) via the flexible leads (32, 33). The switching link (101) includes a mercury reservoir (119). A piezoelectric disk bender (105) displaces mercury to close the gaps between the attachment points (113).

A MEMS switch includes a first signal line provided in a first beam, a first GND adjacent to the first signal line, a second signal line provided in a second beam, and a second GND adjacent to the second signal line. A contact terminal is fixed to any one of the first signal line and the second signal line and performs connection between the first signal line and the second signal line according to deformation of the first beam.

A method of forming a Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) includes forming a lower electrode on a first insulator layer within a cavity of the MEMS. The method further includes forming an upper electrode over another insulator material on top of the lower electrode which is at least partially in contact with the lower electrode. The forming of the lower electrode and the upper electrode includes adjusting a metal volume of the lower electrode and the upper electrode to modify beam bending.

A stacked film is a stacked film including an oxide film, and a metal film provided on the oxide film, in which the oxide film includes a ZrO.sub.2 film of which a main surface is a (001) plane, the metal film includes a Pt film or a Pd film that has a single orientation and of which a main surface is a (001) plane, and a [100] axis of the ZrO.sub.2 film and a [100] axis of the metal film are parallel to an interface between the oxide film and the metal film, and the axes of both are parallel to each other.

Embodiments of the invention include a physiological sensor system. According to an embodiment the sensor system may include a package substrate, a plurality of sensors formed on the substrate, a second electrical component, and an encryption bank formed along a data transmission path between the plurality of sensors and the second electrical component. In an embodiment the encryption bank may include a plurality of portions that each have one or more switches integrated into the package substrate. In an embodiment each sensor transmits data to the second electrical component along different portions of the encryption bank. In some embodiments, the switches may be piezoelectrically actuated. In other embodiments the switches may be actuated by thermal expansion. Additional embodiments may include tri- or bi-stable mechanical switches.

A relay (1) includes a motor (20) and a primary electrical switch assembly (132). Primary electrical switching attachment points (113) are switched by a moveable switching link (101) which is moved in and out of the switch on an switched off position axially by the motor (20) in response to electrical signals delivered to the coil (26) via the flexible leads (32, 33). The switching link (101) includes a mercury reservoir (119). A piezoelectric disk bender (105) displaces mercury to close the gaps between the attachment points (113).

A method of forming at least one Micro-Electro-Mechanical System (MEMS) cavity includes forming a first sacrificial cavity layer over a wiring layer and substrate. The method further includes forming an insulator layer over the first sacrificial cavity layer. The method further includes performing a reverse damascene etchback process on the insulator layer. The method further includes planarizing the insulator layer and the first sacrificial cavity layer. The method further includes venting or stripping of the first sacrificial cavity layer to a planar surface for a first cavity of the MEMS.