An inertial device comprises a frame. A cantilever beam has a first end connected to the frame and a second end cantilevered relative to the frame, the cantilevered beam forming a spring portion between the first end and the second end, the cantilever beam having a support surface defining a support area. The frame and the cantilever beam are made from a support wafer, the support wafer being made of silicon, a thickness of the support wafer at the support area ranging between 0 μm and 800 μm. A mass bonded to the support surface of the silicon wafer at the support area, the mass being made of tungsten, a thickness of the mass being of at least 20 μm.

A microelectromechanical and/or nanoelectromechanical device having a fixed part, at least one suspended part configured to be moveable in the plane of the device with respect to the fixed part along at least one first direction and a first suspension means for suspending the suspended part. The first suspension means includes two suspension elements each having a first end fixed directly to the suspended part and a second end connected to the fixed part, each suspension element having a half-ellipse shape in the plane and extending between the first end and the second end, and the two suspension elements being arranged with respect to each other so as to form an ellipse.

A physical quantity sensor includes a movable flat plate having a plurality of openings passing therethrough that is swingable around an axis of rotation, a support substrate linked to the flat plate via a column to suspend the movable flat plate over the support substrate via a gap, and a protrusion protruding toward the movable element. In a plan view, the openings are excluded from a D/2-width annular range surrounding the outer circumference of the protrusion, where D is the maximum outer diametrical dimension of the protrusion.

A microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensor comprises MEMS components located within a MEMS layer and located relative to one or more electrodes. A plurality of proof masses are located within the MEMS layer and are not electrically coupled to each other within the MEMS layer. Both the first proof mass and the second proof mass move relative to at least a common electrode of the one or more electrodes, such that the relative position of each of the proof masses relative to the electrode may be sensed. A sensed parameter may be determined based on the sensed relative positions.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) gyroscopes and related measurement and calibration techniques are described. Various embodiments facilitate phase estimation of an ideal phase for a demodulator mixer associated with an exemplary MEMS gyroscope using quadrature tuning, which can improve offset performance over life time for exemplary MEMS gyroscopes. Exemplary embodiments can comprise adjusting a quadrature component of an exemplary MEMS gyroscope sense signal, measuring a change in offset of the exemplary MEMS gyroscope at an output of a demodulator mixer associated with the exemplary MEMS gyroscope, estimating a phase error between the quadrature component and a demodulation phase angle of the demodulator mixer based on the change in the offset, and periodically adjusting the demodulation phase angle of the demodulator mixer based on the phase error.

A MEMS microphone, a manufacturing method thereof and an electronic apparatus are disclosed. The MEMS microphone comprises: a MEMS microphone device including a MEMS microphone chip and a mesh membrane monolithically integrated with the MEMS microphone chip; and a housing including an acoustic port, wherein the MEMS microphone device is mounted in the housing, and the mesh membrane is arranged between the MEMS microphone chip and the acoustic port as a particle filter for the MEMS microphone chip.

A scanning device includes a planar scanning mirror disposed within a frame and having a reflective upper surface. A pair of flexures have respective first ends connected to the frame and respective second ends connected to the mirror at opposing ends of a rotational axis of the mirror. A rotor including a permanent magnet is disposed on the lower surface of the mirror. A stator includes first and second cores disposed in proximity to the rotor on opposing first and second sides of the rotational axis and first and second coils of wire wound respectively on the cores. A drive circuit drives the first and second coils with respective electrical currents including a first component selected so as to control a transverse displacement of the mirror and a second component selected so as to control a rotation of the mirror about the rotational axis.

The present invention relates to a capacitive MEMS gyroscope with drive-signal induced offset cancelling features. In a MEMS gyroscope of the type including force feedback circuitry, the drive signal is modulated according to a known modulation scheme or frequency. The modulation scheme/frequency of the drive signal is used by offset cancelling circuitry to determine the offset in the rate signal caused by the drive signal. The determined offset is subsequently removed from the rate signal.

The MEMS gyroscope has a mobile mass carried by a supporting structure to move in a driving direction and in a first sensing direction, perpendicular to each other. A driving structure governs movement of the mobile mass in the driving direction at a driving frequency. A movement sensing structure is coupled to the mobile mass and detects the movement of the mobile mass in the sensing direction. A quadrature-injection structure is coupled to the mobile mass and causes a first and a second movement of the mobile mass in the sensing direction in a first calibration half-period and, respectively, a second calibration half-period. The movement-sensing structure supplies a sensing signal having an amplitude switching between a first and a second value that depend upon the movement of the mobile mass as a result of an external angular velocity and of the first and second quadrature movements. The first and second values of the sensing signal are subtracted from each other and compared with a stored difference value to supply information of variation of the scale factor.

A physical quantity sensor includes a substrate; a movable body that is displaceable about a support axis according to a physical quantity and includes an opening; a support that is provided on the substrate and is located in the opening, and the support includes a first fixed plate and a second fixed plate that are fixed to the substrate and provided so as to sandwich the support axis in plan view; a first beam and a second beam that each connect the first fixed plate with the second fixed plate and are spaced apart from each other; a third beam extending in a direction of the support axis and connecting the first beam with the movable body; and a fourth beam extending in a direction of the support axis and connecting the second beam with the movable body.