With an integrated resonance exciting heater and a self-sensing piezoresistor, resonant micro-cantilever bio/chemical sensors are optimally designed and fabricated by micromachining techniques. This study is emphasized on the optimization of the integrated heating resistor. Previous research has put the heater at either the cantilever clamp end, the midpoint or the free end. Aiming at sufficiently high and stable resonant amplitude, our research indicates that the optimized location of the thermal-electric exciting resistor is the clamp end instead of other positions. By both theoretical analysis and resonance experiments where three heating resistors are placed at the three locations of the fabricated cantilever, it is clarified that the clamp end heating provides the most efficient resonance excitation in terms of resonant amplitude, Q-factor and resonance stability. Besides, the optimized combination of dc bias and ac voltage is determined by both analysis and experimental verification. With the optimized heating excitation, the resonant cantilever is used for biotin–avidin-specific detection, resulting in a ±0.1 Hz ultra-low noise floor of the frequency signal and a 130 fg mass resolution. In addition to resonance excitation, the heater is used to heat up the cantilever for speed-up desorption after detection that helps rapid and repeated sensing to chemical vapor. The clamp end is determined (by simulation) as the optimal heating location for uniform temperature distribution on the cantilever. Using the resonant cantilever, a rapid and repeated sensing experiment on dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) vapor shows that a short-period heating at the detection interval significantly quickens the signal recovery and enhances the sensing repeatability.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Recommended by Michele PenzaThe paper reviews the recent researches implemented in Chinese Academy of Sciences, with achievements on integrated resonant microcantilever sensors. In the resonant cantilevers, the self-sensing elements and resonance exciting elements are both topdown integrated with silicon micromachining techniques. Quite a lot of effort is focused on optimization of the resonance mode and sensing structure for improvement of sensitivity. On the other hand, to enable the micro-cantilevers specifically sensitive to bio/chemical molecules, sensing materials are developed and modified on the cantilever surface with a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) based bottom-up construction and surface functionalization. To improve the selectivity of the sensors and depress environmental noise, multiple and localized surface modifications are developed. The achieved volume production capability and satisfactory detecting resolution to trace-level biological antigen of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) give the micro-cantilever sensors a great promise for rapid and high-resoluble detection.

No abstract

Theoretical analysis is implemented, which results in an interesting conclusion that thinning a resonant cantilever into nano-scale is in favor of achieving ultra-sensitivity by employing a cantilever spring-stiffening sensing effect instead of the conventional mass-loading sensing effect. Using torsion-mode resonance, T-shaped silicon cantilevers are designed and fabricated, with the cantilever silicon thickness of 95 nm. With both the Lorentz force resonance exciting and the piezoresistive self-sensing elements being integrated, the nano-thick cantilever is with its double surfaces modified by self-assembling a sensing molecule layer of acidized carbon-oxy-ethyl-silane-triol, and is then used to detect ppm-level trace trimethylamine vapor via specific molecule adsorption. The specific reaction-induced double-side surface stress acts as an axial force to increase the resonant frequency, with the measured sensitivity 23 times higher than that of the conventional mass-load (gravimetric) method where the frequency decreases. With the novel resonant sensing scheme, the nano-thick cantilevers show promise for ultra-sensitive detection of trace-level gaseous chemicals.

During aircraft maneuvering flights, engine's rotor-bearing systems are subjected to parametric excitations and additional inertial forces, which may cause severe vibration and abnormal operation. Based on Lagrange's principle combined with finite element modeling, the differential equations of motion for a squeeze film damped rotor-bearing system mounted on an aircraft in maneuvering flight are derived. Using Newmark–Hilber–Hughes–Taylor integration method, dynamic characteristics of the nonlinear rotor system under maneuvering flight are investigated. The factors are considered, involving mass unbalance, oil–film force, gravity, parametric excitations and additional inertial forces, and instantaneous static eccentricity of journal induced by maneuvering loads. The effects of forward velocity, radius of curvature, rotating speed, mass unbalance, oil–film clearance, and elastic support stiffness on transient responses of rotor system are discussed during diving–climbing maneuver. The results indicate that when the aircraft performs a diving–climbing maneuver in the vertical plane, the journal deviates from the center of oil–film outer ring, and the excursion direction of whirl orbit is determined by centrifugal acceleration and additional gyroscopic moment. The journal whirls asynchronously around the instantaneous static eccentricity and its magnitude is related to the maneuvering loads and the supporting stiffness. Increasing forward velocity or decreasing pitching radius, the rotor vibration will enter earlier into or withdraw later from the relatively large eccentricity. Rotating near critical speeds or excessive mass unbalances should be prevented during maneuvering flights. For large maneuver, the oil–film radial clearance needs to be enlarged properly to avoid hard contact between journal and outer ring. In addition, the stiffness of elastic support needs to be appropriately determined for damping performance. Overall, it provides a flexible approach with good expandability to predict dynamic characteristics of on-board squeeze-film damped rotor system during maneuvering flights in the design process.