A Decoupling Design with T-Shape Structure for the Aluminum Nitride Gyroscope

Abstract

This paper reports a novel design for the decoupling of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) gyroscopes. The MEMS gyroscope is based on piezoelectric aluminum nitride (AlN) film, and the main structure is a mass hung by T-shape beams. A pair of parallel drive electrodes are symmetrically placed on the surface of the vertical bar for driving the oscillating mass. A serpentine sense electrode is placed on the lateral bar. When the gyroscope is oscillating in drive mode, charges with equal quantity and opposite sign will be polarized and distributed symmetrically along the lateral bar. These charges neutralize each other at the sense electrode. Therefore, no coupling signals can be detected from the sense electrode. This design can realize the decoupling between the drive mode and sense mode. In this work, the T-shape decoupled structure was designed as the key component of an AlN piezoelectric gyroscope and the whole structure was simulated by COMSOL Multiphysics 5.2a. The working principle of the decoupling is described in detail. Electrical properties were characterized by the dynamic signal analyzer. According to the test results, the drive mode and the sense mode are decoupled. The coefficient of orthogonal coupling is 1.55%.