ENGINEERING HIGH Q-FACTOR MEMS RESONATORS AND PROBING LOSSES

The quality factor (Q) of a resonator is critical to its performance be it in the context of realizing an oscillator, filter or sensor. While well-designed single-crystal silicon resonators can have Qs on par with quartz, they compare much less favorably in their electromechanical coupling efficiency. Piezoelectric-on-silicon resonators combine the merits of piezoelectric transduction with the excellent mechanical properties of single-crystal silicon, yet their Qs fall well short of material limits. The exact nature and mechanisms of losses is still not entirely clear. This paper presents an overview of research efforts to probe for the underlying losses and efforts to enhance quality factors in piezoelectric-on-silicon resonators.