Simulation fabrication and characterization of micro-cantilever array based ozone sensor

Abstract

Cantilever plays a significant role in sensing of gases with miniaturing technology replacing conventional sensors. In this paper, the micro-cantilever array was simulated using COMSOL Multiphysics 4.2 and Ansys environment to analyze the microcantilever array based on resonant frequency mechanism. From the simulation results, the fabrication of the micro-cantilever array on SOI wafer with gold layers coated on the surface was done. The microstructure of the fabricated microcantilever array was characterized using SEM and AFM. The fabricated cantilever array was tested by Laser Doppler Vibrometer on exposing it to ozone gas to find the resonant frequency of each cantilever in a micro-cantilver array. From the simulation and fabrication results, it was found that these results were well-matched and the design is best suited for sensing the ozone gas efficiently using micro-cantilever array. Of the three micro-cantilevers in a micro-cantilever array used in this investigation, cantilever-C has good sensitivity towards detecting ozone gas efficiently, due to the high structural stability. Keywords: Micro-cantilever array, Ozone sensor, SOI wafer, Gold layers, Resonant frequency