Magnetic comb drive actuator

Abstract

We present the first electromagnetic comb drive actuator which allows for large, linear actuator motion at large air gap widths of 25 mum and a structural height of 400 mum. Previously reported designs require very narrow air gaps of 3 mum at structural heights of up to 1 mm [1] which makes them sensitive to operate, and challenging to fabricate. The new design reduces the reluctance by a parallel connection of several pole shoes as is well known for electrostatic actuators, which reduces the current consumption and linearizes the current - displacement characteristic. Magnetic and mechanical material properties are measured for an accurate simulation of the system behavior. Experimental results verify the theoretical predictions.