An optical switch includes a bus waveguide supported by a substrate, an actuation electrode supported by the substrate, the actuation electrode having fins that protrude in a direction perpendicular to the substrate and to the bus waveguide, and a reaction electrode having interdigitated fins configured to form a comb drive with the actuation electrode. When a voltage difference between the reaction electrode and the actuation electrode is less than a lower threshold, the reaction electrode is positioned a first distance from the bus waveguide, when the voltage difference between the reaction electrode and the actuation electrode is greater than an upper threshold, the reaction electrode is positioned a second distance from the bus waveguide, and the second distance is less than the first distance.

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.

An optical switch includes a first bus waveguide supported by a substrate, an optical antenna suspended over the first bus waveguide via a spring, and interdigitated electrodes coupling the substrate with optical antenna and configured to control a position of the optical antenna relative to the first bus waveguide. When a voltage difference applied to the interdigitated electrodes is less than a lower threshold, the optical antenna is at a first position offset from the first bus waveguide, when the voltage difference applied to the interdigitated electrodes is greater than an upper threshold, the optical antenna is at a second position offset from the first bus waveguide, and the offset at the second position is greater than at the first position.

There is provided a MEMS resonator comprising a support structure, a distributed cross-sectional resonator element with a particular eigenmode, at least one anchor coupling the distributed cross-sectional resonator element to the support structure, at least one drive electrode for actuating the particular eigenmode, and at least one sense electrode for sensing the particular eigenmode. The particular eigenmode is defined by a propagating series of modes, such as a plurality of Lamé modes. The MEMS resonator may be homogenously doped with one of N-type or P-type dopants, such that a second order temperature coefficient of frequency of the distributed cross-sectional resonator element is about zero. Additionally, the first order temperature coefficient of frequency may be reduced to about zero by modifying the ratio of elongation of the distributed cross-sectional resonator element or by modifying the material composition of the distributed cross-sectional resonator element.

Disclosed herein are implementations of a particles-transferring system, particle transferring unit, and method of transferring particles in a pattern. In one implementation, a particles-transferring system includes a first substrate including a first surface to support particles in a pattern, particle transferring unit including an outer surface to be offset from the first surface by a first gap, and second substrate including a second surface to be offset from the outer surface by a second gap. The particle transferring unit removes the particles from the first surface in response to the particles being within the first gap, secures the particles in the pattern to the outer surface, and transports the particles in the pattern. The second substrate removes the particles in the pattern from the particle transferring unit in response to the particles being within the second gap. The particles are to be secured in the pattern to the second surface.

A microelectromechanical resonator assembly includes a first rectangular resonator array and a second rectangular resonator array, where the first rectangular resonator array and the second rectangular resonator array each have at least two rectangular resonator sub-elements, and the at least two rectangular resonator sub-elements are coupled to each other by one or more connection elements, and the first rectangular resonator array and the second rectangular resonator array are coupled to each other by one or more connection elements.

A capacitive sensor includes a first conductive structure; a second conductive structure movable relative to the first conductive structure in response to an external force acting thereon, wherein the first and the second conductive structures form a first capacitor having a first capacitance that changes with a change in a distance between the first conductive structure and second conductive structure, wherein the first capacitance is representative of the external force; and a diagnostic circuit configured to detect a first leakage current in the capacitive sensor by measuring an first electrical parameter that is affected by the first leakage current and comparing the measured first electrical parameter to a first predetermined error threshold, wherein the diagnostic circuit is further configured to generate a first error signal in response to the measured first electrical parameter being greater than the first predetermined error threshold.

A microfluidic valve, includes arranging a substrate of a mechanically inert material to one or more physicochemical properties over time, configuring a structural portion of the valve; additive layer manufacturing to print, a succession of one or more filaments of a material with mechanical response to one or more of said physicochemical properties over time, preferably LCP, configuring a functional portion of the valve; and arranging the succession of filaments on the substrate, configuring a fluid flow rate through the valve using the application of an anti-adhesion treatment on one or more interfaces of said filaments and the substrate.

Methods are disclosed for manufacturing a Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) scanning mirror. In an embodiment, one method includes depositing a hinge material on a substrate and removing first and second portions of the substrate to form an outer frame, an inner frame, and a mirror plate in the substrate. First and second portions of the hinge material rotationally couple the outer frame to the inner frame and the inner frame to the mirror plate for rotation about first and second orthogonal axes of rotation. In another embodiment, a third portion of the substrate rotationally couples the inner frame to the mirror plate. In still another embodiment, an elastomer material is configured as a bending hinge that rotationally couples the outer frame to the inner frame.

A RF antenna comprises a quartz resonator having electrodes disposed thereon with a magnetostrictive film disposed on the quartz resonator either on, partially under or adjacent at least one of the electrodes. A RF antenna having a magnetostrictive film may be made by patterning selected portions of a top surface of the quartz wafer for deposition of electrode metal and deposition of the magnetostrictive film and depositing the electrode metal and the magnetostrictive film; temporarily bonding the quartz wafer to a handle wafer; thinning the quartz wafer to a desired thickness; etching the quartz wafer to define the outlines of at least one quartz resonator bearing the electrode metal and the magnetostrictive film; patterning selected portions of a bottom surface the at least one quartz resonator for deposition of electrode metal and at least one bond pad and depositing the electrode metal and the at least one bond pad; bonding the at least one quartz resonator to a substrate wafer; and releasing the at least one quartz resonator from the handle wafer.