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3 results on '"Ye, Zhixin"'

1. Millivolt Micro-Electro-Mechanical Relay Devices & Circuits

Author

Ye, Zhixin Alice

Subjects
Electrical engineering, logic switch, low power, MEMS, nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS), relay
Abstract

The emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) has brought energy consumption to the forefront of challenges for future information processing devices. Digital logic integrated circuits (ICs) implemented with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) transistors have a fundamental lower limit on energy consumption due to their non-zero OFF-state current (I_OFF) and finite sub-threshold slope. In contrast, micro-electro-mechanical (MEM) switches (relays) can achieve zero I_OFF and have abrupt switching characteristics; therefore, they have attracted growing interest for ultra-low-power computing applications.This dissertation first addresses challenges for realizing millivolt operation of relay ICs. The impact of electrode configuration on contact resistance and hysteresis voltage is investigated, and it is found that reducing the number of contact dimples from 4 to 2 improves the tradeoff between on-state resistance and minimum operating voltage. With an anti-stiction self-assembled monolayer (SAM) coating, a variety of pass-gate logic circuits using the new 2-contact-dimple relay design are demonstrated to operate with sub-50 mV voltage signals; these include AND, OR and XOR gates and a 2:1 multiplexer (MUX). Multi-functional MEM relay circuits are also demonstrated including a majority gate, 2-bit 2:1 MUX, and dual-polarity gates (XOR/XNOR). Next, this dissertation addresses remaining practical challenges and discusses opportunities for MEM relay technology. A new method using voltage pulses to reliably break down native oxide on contact-electrode surfaces is developed. SAM coating and operation in liquid dielectric media are explored for improving on-state resistance stability for tungsten contacts in ambient conditions. Finally, MEM relays are demonstrated to function well in extreme environments across a wide temperature range.Finally, this dissertation proposes a novel relay design that incorporates a beam with negative stiffness to reduce the body bias voltage necessary for millivolt operation. This compensated relay design is investigated with the aid of computer simulations, and is found to provide for improved tradeoff between relay switching energy and turn-on delay under certain conditions. The effects of process-induced variations on relay switching voltage are studied and compared for the compensated relay design vs. a conventional relay design.

Published
2021

2. Body-Biased Multiple-Gate Micro-Electro-Mechanical Relays.

Author

Ye, Zhixin A., Almeida, Sergio F., Sikder, Urmita, Hu, Xiaoer, Esatu, Tsegereda K., Le, Kathy, Jeon, Jaeseok, and Liu, Tsu-Jae King

Subjects
COMPUTER logic, LOGIC circuits, DIGITAL electronics, VOLTAGE, METAL oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors
Abstract

Micro-electro-mechanical relays with multiple gate electrodes (i.e., multiple input voltage signals), operated with a tunable body bias voltage, are investigated for more compact and energy-efficient implementation of digital logic circuits. Specifically, a relay design with three gate electrodes of equal area is demonstrated to be capable of performing different digital logic functions for the same input operating voltage (${V} _{\textbf {DD}}$), by adjusting the body bias voltage. Since the lower limit for ${V} _{\textbf {DD}}$ is equal to the switching hysteresis voltage (${V} _{\textbf {H}}$), the magnitude of ${V} _{\textbf {H}}$ is investigated for different combinations of transitioning input voltage signals. It is found that ${V} _{\textbf {H}}$ is larger for fewer transitioning input voltage signals, i.e., reduced effective actuation area of the switching input voltage signal. This can set a practical upper limit for the number of independent gates in a single relay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2021
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3. Sub-100 mV Computing With Electro-Mechanical Relays.

Author

Qian, Chuang, Peschot, Alexis, Osoba, Benjamin, Ye, Zhixin Alice, and Liu, Tsu-Jae King

Subjects
ELECTROMECHANICAL technology, COMPLEMENTARY metal oxide semiconductors, COMPUTER logic, LOGIC circuits, HYSTERESIS
Abstract

The energy efficiency of a CMOS digital logic circuit is fundamentally limited by the nonideal switching behavior of transistors, specifically their nonzero off-state current and finite subthreshold slope. In contrast, mechanical switches (relays) can achieve zero off-state current and perfectly abrupt switching characteristics; therefore, they have attracted growing interest for ultralow-power computing applications. A challenge for electro-mechanical relay technology is to reduce the hysteresis voltage, because this sets the minimum operating voltage of the relays. Herein, we report a surface-micromachinedelectrostatically actuated relaywith <70-mV hysteresis voltage, achieved by designing it to have relatively large structural stiffness and to operate in nonpull-inmode. A relay-based inverter circuit is demonstrated to operate reliably with a switching voltage below 100 mV, representing a significant milestone toward ultralow-power mechanical computing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2017
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