A 6.7 MHz nanoelectromechanical ring oscillator using curved cantilever switches coated with amorphous carbon

Abstract

Nanoelectromechanical (NEM) switches have the potential to complement or replace traditional CMOS transistors in the area of ultra-low power digital electronics. This paper reports the demonstration of the first ring oscillator built using cell-level digital logic elements based on curved NEM switches. The NEM switch has a size of 5×3 μm2, an air gap of 60 nm and is coated with amorphous carbon (a-C) for reliable operation. The ring oscillator operates at a frequency of 6.7 MHz and confirms the simulated inverter propagation delay of 25 ns. The successful fabrication and measurement of this demonstrator is a key milestone on the way towards an optimized, scaled technology with sub-nanosecond switching times, lower operating voltages and VLSI implementation.