Simple and Efficient AlN-Based Piezoelectric Energy Harvesters
Imrich Gablech,
Jaroslav Klempa,
Jan Pekárek,
Petr Vyroubal,
Jan Hrabina,
Miroslava Holá,
Jan Kunz,
Jan Brodský,
Pavel Neužil
Affiliations
Imrich Gablech
Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Jaroslav Klempa
Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Jan Pekárek
Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Petr Vyroubal
Department of Electrical and Electronic Technology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Jan Hrabina
Institute of Scientific Instruments, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ-61264 Brno, Czech Republic
Miroslava Holá
Institute of Scientific Instruments, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ-61264 Brno, Czech Republic
Jan Kunz
Department of Control and Instrumentations, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Jan Brodský
Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, CZ-61600 Brno, Czech Republic
Pavel Neužil
Department of Microsystem Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an 710072, China
In this work, we demonstrate the simple fabrication process of AlN-based piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEH), which are made of cantilevers consisting of a multilayer ion beam-assisted deposition. The preferentially (001) orientated AlN thin films possess exceptionally high piezoelectric coefficients d33 of (7.33 ± 0.08) pC∙N−1. The fabrication of PEH was completed using just three lithography steps, conventional silicon substrate with full control of the cantilever thickness, in addition to the thickness of the proof mass. As the AlN deposition was conducted at a temperature of ≈330 °C, the process can be implemented into standard complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology, as well as the CMOS wafer post-processing. The PEH cantilever deflection and efficiency were characterized using both laser interferometry, and a vibration shaker, respectively. This technology could become a core feature for future CMOS-based energy harvesters.
