Nanomechanical resonators based on strained silicon nitride (Si 3 N 4 ) have received a large amount of attention in fields such as sensing and quantum optomechanics due to their exceptionally high quality factors (Qs). Room-temperature Qs approaching 1 billion are now in reach by means of phononic crystals (soft-clamping) and strain engineering. Despite great progress in enhancing Qs, difficulties in fabrication of soft-clamped samples limits their implementation into actual devices. An alternative means of achieving ultra-high Qs was shown using trampoline resonators with engineered clamps, which serves to localize the stress to the center of the resonator, while minimizing stress at the clamping. The effectiveness of this approach has since come into question from recent studies employing string resonators with clamptapering. Here, we investigate this idea using nanomechanical string resonators with engineered clampings similar to those presented for trampolines. Importantly, the effect of orienting the strings diagonally or perpendicularly with respect to the silicon frame is investigated. It is found that increasing the clamp width for diagonal strings slightly increases the Qs of the fundamental out-of-plane mode at small radii, while perpendicular strings only deteriorate with increasing clamp width. Measured Qs agree well with finite element method simulations even for higher-order resonances. The small increase cannot account for previously reported Qs of trampoline resonators. Instead, we propose the effect to be intrinsic and related to surface and radiation losses.
Development of broadband thermal sensors for the detection of, among others, radiation, single nanoparticles, or single molecules is of great interest. In recent years, photothermal spectroscopy based on the shift of the resonance frequency of stressed nanomechanical resonators has been successfully demonstrated. Here, we show the application of soft-clamped phononic crystal membranes made of silicon nitride as thermal sensors. It is experimentally demonstrated how a quasi-band-gap remains even at very low tensile stress, in agreement with finite-element-method simulations. An increase of the relative responsivity of the fundamental defect mode is found when compared to that of uniform square membranes of equal size, with enhancement factors as large as an order of magnitude. We then show phononic crystals engineered inside nanomechanical trampolines, which results in additional reduction of the tensile stress and increased thermal isolation, resulting in further enhancement of the responsivity. Finally, defect-mode and band-gap tuning is shown by laser heating of the defect to the point where the fundamental defect mode completely leaves the band gap.
Fabry-Pérot etalons (FPE) have found their way into many applications. In fields such as spectroscopy, telecommunications, and astronomy, FPEs are used for their high sensitivity as well as their exceptional filtering capability. However, air-spaced etalons with high finesse are usually built by specialized facilities. Their production requires a clean room, special glass handling, and coating machinery, meaning commercially available FPEs are sold for a high price. In this article, a new and cost-effective method to fabricate fiber-coupled FPEs with standard photonic laboratory equipment is presented. The protocol should serve as a step-by-step guide for the construction and characterization of these FPEs. We hope this will enable researchers to conduct fast and cost-effective prototyping of FPEs for various fields of application. The FPE, as presented here, is used for spectroscopic applications. As shown in the representative results section via proof of principle measurements of water vapor in ambient air, this FPE has a finesse of 15, which is sufficient for the photothermal detection of trace concentrations of gases.
An instrument for gas and aerosol sensing based on photothermal interferometry has been developed. Depending on the light source used for photothermal excitation, either gas or aerosol concentrations may be measured. A fabrication process for low-cost air-spaced Fabry-Pérot etalons, for the interferometric detection unit, is presented. Based on a demonstrator setup, an extensive scrutiny of all noise sources is being performed serving as a basis for the evaluation of the miniaturization potential of said sensor system. First measurements with water vapor were conducted, highlighting the sensor's potential.
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