Author's Accepted Manuscript

Accurate electrostatic and van der Waals pullin prediction for fully clamped nano/microbeams using linear universal graphs of pull-in
instability
Masoud Tahani, Amir R. Askari

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Reference:

S1386-9477(14)00207-0
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physe.2014.05.023
PHYSE11619

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Physica E

Received date: 29 March 2014

Revised date: 8 May 2014
Accepted date: 23 May 2014
Cite this article as: Masoud Tahani, Amir R. Askari, Accurate electrostatic and
van der Waals pull-in prediction for fully clamped nano/micro-beams using
linear universal graphs of pull-in instability, Physica E, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.
physe.2014.05.023
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Accurate electrostatic and van der Waals pull-in prediction for fully
clamped nano/micro-beams using linear universal graphs of pull-in
instability

Masoud Tahani, Amir R. Askari*

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
*

Corresponding author. Tel.: +98 511 8806055; fax: +98 511 8763304.

E-mail addresses: a.r.askari@stu-mail.um.ac.ir, amaskari@gmail.com (Amir R. Askari)

Abstract
In spite of the fact that pull-in instability of electrically actuated nano/micro-beams has been
investigated by many researchers to date, no explicit formula has been presented yet which
can predict pull-in voltage based on a geometrically non-linear and distributed parameter
model. The objective of present paper is to introduce a simple and accurate formula to predict
this value for a fully clamped electrostatically actuated nano/micro-beam. To this end, a nonlinear Euler-Bernoulli beam model is employed, which accounts for the axial residual stress,
geometric non-linearity of mid-plane stretching, distributed electrostatic force and the van der
Waals (vdW) attraction. The non-linear boundary value governing equation of equilibrium is
non-dimensionalized and solved iteratively through single-term Galerkin based reduced order
model (ROM). The solutions are validated thorough direct comparison with experimental and
other existing results reported in previous studies. Pull-in instability under electrical and vdW
loads are also investigated using universal graphs. Based on the results of these graphs, nondimensional pull-in and vdW parameters, which are defined in the text, vary linearly versus
the other dimensionless parameters of the problem. Using this fact, some linear equations are
presented to predict pull-in voltage, the maximum allowable length, the so-called detachment
1

length, and the minimum allowable gap for a nano/micro-system. These linear equations are
also reduced to a couple of universal pull-in formulas for systems with small initial gap. The
accuracy of the universal pull-in formulas are also validated by comparing its results with
available experimental and some previous geometric linear and closed-form findings
published in the literature.

Highlights

A new supper-convergent iterative solution for nano/micro-beam pull-in analysis is

introduced.

The present approach doesnt suffer from long run time.

Pull-in universal graphs which accounts for the effect of van der Waals attraction are
presented.

Some linear relationships between dimensionless parameters of the problem are found.

Pull-in characteristics for electrically actuated nano/micro-beams are also extracted explicitly.

Keywords
N/MEMS, vdW attraction, Pull-in instability, Detachment length, Universal pull-in graphs,
Universal pull-in formulas

1. Introduction
Stability analysis of nano/micro-systems is a very desirable research topic nowadays.
These systems have applications in many engineering fields such as communications,
automotive and robotics [1]. Nano/micro-electro-mechanical systems (N/MEMS) can be
considered as a largest collection of these systems, because of their fast response, low power
consumption, reliability and their batch fabrications [2]. Electrically actuated nano/microbeams represent a major structural component and plays a crucial role in many N/MEMS
2

devices [2]. One of the most important phenomena associated with electrically actuated
nano/micro-beams is pull-in instability. This instability is occurred when the input voltage
exceeds a critical value called pull-in voltage. In this manner the elastic nano/micro-beam
suddenly collapses toward the substrate. To date, lots of researchers have dealt with the
mechanical behavior of electrically actuated nano/micro-beams. Here, some of these works
are reviewed.
Nathanson et al. [3] and Taylor [4] investigated pull-in instability experimentally.
Osterberg [5] studied this instability in electrically actuated micro-beams and circular microdiaphragms using linear spring-mass model and presented some closed-form solutions.
Although his closed-form formulas could represent pull-in voltage in terms of system
properties explicitly, his analytical results suffered from maximum relative error of 20% in
comparison to those obtained experimentally. Tilmans and Legtenberg [6] studied free
vibration and static behaviors of a wide double clamped micro-beam using linear beam
theory. They approximated pull-in voltage and first fundamental resonance frequency of a
micro-system using the principle of minimum total potential energy and Rayleighs quotient,
respectively. They also validated their findings with experimental results. Abdel-Rahman et
al. [7] investigated the oscillatory behavior as well as pull-in instability of micro-beams
utilizing the non-linear Euler-Bernoulli beam theory in which the effect of mid-plane
stretching had been taken into account. They investigated pull-in instability and the frequency
of vibrating micro-beams about their static deflection numerically using shooting method.
But their solution did not converge for micro-systems with large initial gaps. Younis et al. [8]
developed a ROM and investigated static and free vibration behaviors as well as pull-in
instability of a double clamped micro-beam. Their alternative approach could remove the
limitations of shooting method presented by Abdel-Rahman et al.[7]. Krylov [9] studied static
and dynamic pull-in instabilities for double clamped micro-beams under distributed

electrostatic actuation and non-linear squeeze film damping using multi-term ROM. He used
ninth and third-orders of ROM for static and dynamic problems, respectively. He validated
the static pull-in results with 3-D coupled simulation findings obtained using IntelliSuiteTM
package. He also compared his predictions for dynamic pull-in voltage with finite difference
results. Batra et al. [10] analyzed free vibrations of micro-beams predeformed by an electric
field incorporating the effect of fringing field and finite deflections thorough simple and
computationally efficient single term ROM. They converted the boundary value governing
differential equilibrium equation to a non-linear algebraic equation using their single degreeof-freedom (SDOF) model and solved the resulting equation numerically. Chao et al. [11]
investigated static and dynamic pull-in instabilities for double clamped micro-beams actuated
by polarized DC voltage using bifurcation analysis. Although, their model accounted for axial
residual stress, distributed electrostatic forcing term and the effect of fringing field, the
geometric non-linearity of mid-plane stretching had been neglected in their analysis.
Therefore, it cannot predict pull-in voltage for nano/micro-beams with large initial gap. They
transferred the partial differential equation of motion to an ordinary equation in time using
single-term Galerkin based ROM and used Hopf bifurcation analysis to determine static and
dynamic pull-in voltages. They simplified the problem using fifth-order Taylor's series
expansion of the electrostatic forcing term and presented some closed-form formulas for
static and dynamic pull-in voltages. Although they could provide some closed-form solutions
for static case, due to the high non-linearity involved in dynamic cases, they could present
closed-form solution only for dynamically excited systems without the effect of fringing
field. Mojahedi et al. [12] also investigated static pull-in instability using single-term ROM.
They converted the boundary value governing differential equation to an algebraic equation
using first linear and un-damped mode-shape of an un-deformed micro-beam. They solved
the resulting non-linear algebraic equation through homotopy perturbation method (HPM).

Their model accounted for fringing field effect, non-linearity of mid-plane stretching and
axial residual stress. It should be noted that although most of previous solutions could
represent very accurate results, to date no explicit formula for pull-in voltage has been
presented in the literature which can describe it based on a geometrically non-linear and
distributed parameter model.
By decreasing in the dimensions of electrically actuated systems from micro-scales to
nano-scales the intermolecular surface forces significantly influence on the behaviors of
nano/micro-beams. The most important forces at the scale of N/MEMS are the Casimir and
vdW attractions. The vdW force arises from the correlated oscillation of the instantaneously
induced dipole moments of the atoms placed at the close parallel conductive plates [13]. The
vdW force is a short range force in nature, but it can lead to long range effects more than 0.1
m [14]. The Casimir force can be simply understood as the long range analog of the vdW
force, resulting from the propagation of retarded electromagnetic waves [15]. The effect of
vdW and Casimir forces on the behavior of nano and micro-systems has been investigated by
many researchers. Lin and Zhao [16] studied the behavior of nano-scale actuators using a
spring-mass model considering the vdW force. They also presented some closed-form
formulas for minimum allowable gap and the detachment length in nano/micro-systems.
Ramezani et al. [17] proposed a distributed parameter model to study pull-in instability of
electrically actuated nano-cantilevers subjected to the vdW and Casimir forces. They
transferred non-linear differential equation of the model into the integral form by using the
Greens function of the clamped-free beam and the integral equation was solved analytically
using the appropriate shape function of the beam deflection. Jia et al. [18] studied the free
vibrations of nano/micro-beams with different boundary conditions under the combined
effect of the distributed electrostatic and Casimir forces for both homogenous and nonhomogenous functionally graded material with two material phases through the differential

quadrature method (DQM). Their model accounted for axial residual stress and the nonlinearity of mid-plane stretching. Static and dynamic pull-in instabilities of electrically
actuated nano/micro-beams in presence of the vdW and Casimir forces were investigated by
Moghimi Zand and Ahmadian [19]. They considered the geometric non-linearity of midplane stretching, applied axial loading, fringing field effect, the Casimir and vdW attractions
and solved the governing equation using the non-linear finite element method (NFEM).
This paper focuses on pull-in instability of clamped-clamped nano/micro-beams actuated
by polarized DC voltage under the effect of vdW force. A non-linear Euler-Bernoulli beam
model which accounts for the effect of axial residual stress and the von Karman-type of
geometric non-linearity is utilized. The boundary value governing differential equation of
equilibrium is non-dimensionalized and reduced to an algebraic equation using a simple and
computationally efficient SDOF model. The present model obtained by approximating the
deflection field with un-damped and linear mode shape of the nano/micro-beam. The
resulting non-linear algebraic equation is also solved iteratively. To predict static pull-in
conditions, the universal graphs are presented which depict the variation of non-dimensional
pull-in parameter versus the other dimensionless parameters of the problem. These graphs
show that the non-dimensional pull-in parameter varies linearly versus the other
dimensionless parameters of the system. Based on this important finding, some simple,
efficient and accurate formulas are introduced which can predict pull-in voltage for clampedclamped nano/micro-beams under the combined effect of electrostatic excitation and vdW
attraction. These linear equations are also reduced to a single formula for systems with small
initial gap. It is shown that pull-in voltages predicted by this formula agree very well with
those obtained using the present iterative method and Chao's closed-form equation [11] as
well as available experimental data in the literature. The present results are also compared
with those provided by Chao's equation [11] for systems with large initial gap. It is found that

Chao's equation represents poor results for such systems due to the fact that, the non-linearity
of mid-plain stretching has been neglected in this formula. It is shown that using present
linear pull-in formulas can remove this inability.
The minimum allowable gap and maximum allowable length of system, the detachment
length, are also specified explicitly, through determining critical value of non-dimensional
vdW parameter. It should be noted that if vdW parameter in a nano/micro-system reaches
values greater than its critical value, this system will be pulled-in under only vdW attraction.
Therefore, such a device cannot be worked appropriately. The critical value of vdW
parameter is also predicted in terms of dimensionless properties of the system using another
universal graph. This graph also shows another linear relationship in electrically actuated
nano/micro-systems. Based on this fact, some linear formulas are also presented in this case
to predict the critical value of vdW parameter. These equations are also reduced to a single
one for systems with small initial gap. The results of this equation are also compared with
analytical findings reported by Lin and Zhao [16] using spring-mass model. It is shown that
using present pull-in formulas instead of previous closed-form solutions may be very simple
and applicable for specifying the critical dimensions and pull-in voltage in electrically
actuated nano/micro-beams.
Due to the numerous usages of clamped-clamped nano/micro-beams in N/MEMS devices,
this type of nano/micro-beams is analyzed in this paper. It is noted that, although the fully
clamped nano/micro-beam is investigated in present study, the current approach can be
applied to any boundary conditions by utilizing appropriate mode shape in the Galerkin
procedure and determining the new dimensionless parameters of system. To the best of the
authors knowledge, no previous work has been conducted in open literature.

2. Problem formulation
Fig. 1 shows a typical structure of N/MEMS devices, where the main components are
fixed and movable electrodes. The fixed electrode modeled as a ground plane and the
movable one modeled as a fully clamped nano/micro-beam under the combined action of the
electrostatic excitation and the vdW force. The length, width and density of nano/micro-beam
are L, b and , respectively. The initial gap between the non-actuated beam and the
stationary electrode is d. Also, x, y, and z are the coordinates along the length, width and
thickness, respectively. W is deflection of the beam, I is the second moment of cross-sectional
area about the y axis, is Poissons ratio and E is the effective Youngs modulus of the
nano/micro-beam which is replaced by E / (1 2 ) when b > 5h based on the plane strain
theory [8].
The electrostatic excitation by polarized DC voltage V without the effect of fringing field
per unit length of the beam can be expressed as

Fes =

bV

(1)

2(d W )2

It is noted that the fringing field does not have a sizable effect especially for the case of
wide nano/micro-beams [11]. The vdW force per unit length of the beam takes the following
form [20]:
f vdW =

Ab
6 (d W )3

(2)

where is the dielectric constant of medium and A is the Hamaker constant. The Hamaker
constant for two identical metal media (Ag, Au, Cu) interacting across vacuum (air) has
values in range ( 30 50) 1020 J [20].

Due to the elongation of fixed-fixed nano/micro-beam which is called the mid-plane

stretching effect and the mismatch of both thermal expansion coefficient and crystal lattice
period between substrate and nano/micro-beam film which is un-avoidable in surface micromachining techniques, a resultant axial force is applied to the nano/micro-beam [21]

Faxial = Fr + Fa

(3)

The axial force due to the mid-plane stretching effect (von Krmn-type of geometric nonlinearity) takes the following form [10]
Fa =

Ebh 1 2
W dx
2L 0

(4)

and the one due to the residual stress can be defined as [21]

Fr = r bh

(5)

where r represents the axial residual stress. So the differential equation which governs the
equilibrium of the clamped-clamped nano/micro-beam subjected to the combined effect of
electrostatic excitation and the vdW force is represented as follows [8]

Ebh 1 2

EIW = Fr +
W dx
2L 0

W + Fes + FvdW

(6)

where prime sign denotes derivative with respect to x. The nano/micro-beam deflection is
subjected to the following kinematic boundary conditions.

W (0, t ) = 0,

W (0, t )
W (L , t )
= 0, W (L , t ) = 0,
=0
x
x

(7)

For convenience, the following dimensionless variables are introduced

W
x
W = ; x =
d
L

(8)

Upon substitution of the dimensionless quantities given in Eq. (8) into Eq. (6) and dropping
the hats, the following result will be obtained

W = W 2dx + N
0
1

W +
+
2

(1 W )
(1 W )3

(9)

where
2

12Fr L 2
6 v 2 L4
2AL4
d
=
=
= 6 , N =

,
,
3
Ebh 3
Eh 3d 3
Eh 3d 4
h

(10)

In this paper , N , 3 and are non-dimensional parameters of the system and called gap,
axial force, vdW and electrostatic parameters.

3. Solution procedure
Due to the high non-linearity involved in Eq. (9), a closed-form solution for this equation
cannot be found. Hence, an approximate solution will be developed through the Galerkin
weighted residual method. Based on this procedure, the nano/micro-beam deflection can be
expressed as a linear combination of a complete set of linearly independent basis functions
[22]. It is noted that these functions must satisfy all kinematic boundary conditions [22].
Therefore, linear and un-damped mode shapes of the un-deformed nano/micro-beam can be
used as these basis functions. It is proved that using only the first mode for pull-in analysis of
electrically actuated nano/micro-beams maybe very accurate [10, 12]. Hence, the deflection
of nano/micro-beam based on one-mode solution can be expressed as

W (x ) =w (x )

(11)

where w is an un-known parameter determined through the Galerkin procedure and (x ) is

the first linear and un-damped mode shape of the un-deformed nano/micro-beam determined
as [23]

( x ) = {cosh ( x ) cos ( x ) sinh ( x ) sin ( x ) }

(12)

where the parameters and for double clamped nano/micro-beam are given in Eq. (13)
[23].
10

 = 4.7300, = 0.9825

(13)

Here, ( x ) is normalized such that the parameter w describes the mid-point deflection of
nano/micro-beam. Hence, the parameter can be determined as [24]

= 0.6297

(14)

Next, we multiply Eq. (9) by ( x ) , substitute Eq. (11) into the resulting equation, integrate
the outcome from x = 0 to 1 and obtain
1

1w + 3 w 3 = / (1 w )2 dx + 3 / (1 w )3 dx

(15)

where
1

1 = dx N
0

0 dx ,

3 = 2dx

(16)

The deflection of nano/micro-beam under electrical and vdW loads can be determined by
solving the algebraic Eq. (15). In this paper, this equation is solved iteratively. To this end,
the non-linear Eq. (15) is rewritten in the following form

1w + ` (w ) = 0

(17)

where
1

` (w ) = 3 w 3 / (1 w )2 dx 3 / (1 w )3 dx

(18)

At the first step, the non-linear terms in Eq. (15) (i.e. ` (w ) ) are calculated when w 0 = 0 as
1

` 0 = 3 w 03 / (1 w 0 )2 dx 3 / (1 w 0 )3 dx = ( + 3 ) dx

(19)

Substituting ` 0 from Eq. (19) into Eq. (17), yields the first estimation of mid-point deflection
(i.e.w 1 ) as

w1 =

` 0
1

(20)

11

The next estimation of ` (w ) (i.e. `1 ) will be obtained by substituting w 1 from Eq. (20) into
Eq. (18) as
1

`1 = 3 w 13 / (1 w 1 )2 dx 3 / (1 w 1 )3 dx

(21)

Substituting `1 from Eq. (21) into Eq. (17), leads to the second estimation of mid-point
deflection (i.e.w 2 ). This iterative procedure is continued till the convergence is achieved or
pull-in is happened. The convergence criteria is defined as

(w i

w i 1 ) / w i 10 6

(22)

and the pull-in will be happened if

w i 1
It is noted that the integrals

(23)
1

0 / (1 w i )

dx and

0 / (1 w i )

dx should be calculated

numerically and repeated at the each step.

4. Results and discussion

4.1. Comparison and validation

To validate the present iterative approach, a poly-silicon micro-beam with the geometric
and material properties listed in Table 1 with four different lengths is considered. Pull-in
voltages for these four cases are compared with experimental observations provided by
Tilmans and Legtenberg [6] and DQM findings reported by Kuang and Chen [25] in Table 2.
It should be noted that in this comparison, the effect of vdW force has been neglected
(i.e. 3 = 0 ).

Based on the results of Table 2, the accuracy of present itrative approach can be observed.
Another validation is preformed for micro-beams with 3 = N = 0 and some different gap
parameters in Fig. 2. The present results are compared with those obtained by Abdel-Rahman
12

et al [7] in this figure. It should be noted that they solved the similar problem using shooting
method, but their solution could not capture pull-in instbility especially for cases with large
gap parameter. The effect of vdW force is also neglegted in this comparison.
The accuracy and simplicity of present approach as well as its ability in capturing pull-in
instability for cases with large gap parameter can be observed from Fig. 2. Consider another
poly-silicon micro-beam with properties listed in Table 3. Pull-in voltage for this micro-beam
without the effect of vdW force is calculated as V PI = 45.80 V which agrees very well with
V PI = 45.62 V extracted from Fig. 4 of Krylovs paper [9]. It is noted that Krylov considered
both distributed electrostatic force and distributed force originating from the air squeeze film
pressure. However, he set all time derivatives to zero for obtaining the results of this figure
which means that the air pressure effect has been neglected in it. Fig. 3 shows the variation of
mid-point deflection versus the input voltage for this micro-beam. It should be noted that
although we use w 1 for pull-in condition in our solution, this instability can be observed
when the slope of deflection-voltage graph reaches infinity [12]. Therefore, in such graphs
we reduce the upper limits of vertical axis from 1 to the first value which can depict this
infinity slope for a better presentation.
It should be noted that Krylov [9] multiplied both sides of the governing equation by the
denominator of electrostatic forcing term and solved the resulting boundary value equation
through a ninth-order ROM, but we solved the problem without this multiplication. It is
worth noting that this multiplication adds significant effects of higher-order modes in the
reduced order equation(s). Therefore, it is essential to account for higher-order modes in such
condition.
The present single-mode technique has been also used in some previous studies [10, 12].
Batra et al. [10] studied oscillatory behavior of a micro-beam predeformed by an electric field
numerically and Mojahedi et al. [12] investigated pull-in instability through HPM. It is noted
13

that the non-linear algebraic equilibrium equation has been solved through a new iterative
procedure in this study. One of the benefits of present approach is its short run time which
provides us to determine the pull-in voltages for a large number of nano/micro-systems.
Based on this ability, we can plot some universal graphs which depict the variation of pull-in
parameter (i.e. PI ) versus the other non-dimensional parameters of the system. These
universal graphs show the linear relationship between pull-in parameter and the other
dimensionless parameters of the problem. Using this important finding, pull-in voltage for a
nano/micro-system can be determined without the need for solving the non-linear governing
equation. This procedure is explained more in the next two sections.
Another comparison is also performed here to show the accuracy of present iterative
approach when the effect of vdW force has been taken into account. To this end, another
nano/micro-beam with non-dimensional properties N = 0 and = 6 is considered. Fig. 4
shows the variation of pull-in parameter ( PI ) versus the vdW parameter. The present
findings are also compared with NFEM results obtained by Moghimi Zand and Ahmadian
[19] in Fig. 4. Based on this figure and the previous comparisons, it can be observed that the
combination of single-mode ROM and present iterative solution can be treated as a promising
tool for pull-in problems in electrically actuated nano/micro-beams.

4.2. Universal graphs for pull-in instability

Fig. 5 shows the variation of pull-in parameter versus the other non-dimensional
parameters of the problem. Based on this figure, pull-in parameter varies linearly versus axial
force and vdW parameters and almost linearly versus the gap parameter.
Due to the linear variation of pull-in parameter, one can fit some lines to the results of Fig.
5. These lines and their corresponding equations are presented in Fig. 6. Due to the fact that

PI varies linearly versus axial force and vdW parameters and almost linearly versus the gap
14

parameter, Fig. 6 depicts the variation of PI versus N and 3 at some constant gap
parameters. Although the slopes of these lines are a little different for small gap parameters,
the lines become parallel by increasing in the value of this parameter. It is worth noting that
this fact can also show almost linear variation of PI versus .
It is noted that gap parameter in most of electrically actuated nano/micro-beams is quite
small (e.g. 0 6 ) [5, 6, 26, 27]. Therefore, a universal pull-in formula for such systems
can be presented. Due to the non-linearity involved in the variation of pull-in parameter
versus the gap parameter for systems with large gap parameter, it is better to employ the
equations presented in Fig. 6 and a linear interpolation between their results for predicting
pull-in instability more accurately. The universal pull-in formula is

PI = 1.66N + 1.5 1.413 + 69.4

(24)

It is to be noted that if N = N b , where N b is the non-dimensional buckling load, the

nano/microsystem will be buckled and the pull-in parameter reaches zero. It may be noted
that N b for double clamped nano/micro-beams is around -40.
Consider a poly-silicon micro-beam with properties presented in Table 1. The results of
universal pull-in formula (i.e. Eq. (24)) have been compared with experimental observations
provided by Tilmans and Legtenberg [6] in Table 4 as well as those obtained through present
iterative approach. These results are also compared with those provided by Chao's closedform equation [11]. It should be noted that the effect of mid-plane stretching has been
neglected in Chao's formula. The Chao's closed-form equation is [11]

V PIChao =

0.927783 82.2287 + 2.02165N

(25)

where

15

bL4

FL
, N = r
3
2EId
EI

(26)

It should be noted that by increasing in the gap parameter, it is better to employ the
equations presented in Fig. 6 and linear interpolation between their results. To explain this
procedure more, consider the previous micro-beam with length L = 510m , initial gap
d = 4m and the other properties presented in Table 1. The gap parameter for this case is

= 42.66 which is placed between the categories of = 24 and = 54 in Fig. 6(b). Pull-in
parameter for this case can be calculated as PI = 231.38 through linear interpolation
between PI = 192.24 and PI = 255.17 which are related to = 24 and = 54 , respectively.
Pull-in voltage which corresponds to PI = 231.38 , can also be calculated as V PI = 48.04V
for this poly-silicon micro-beam. The calculated pull-in voltage is also compared with that
obtained by present iterative approach and Chao's closed-form equation (i.e. Eq. (25)) in
Table 5.
One can observe the accuracy of pull-in equations presented in Fig. 6 for large gap
parameter systems. The poor prediction provided by Chao's equation (i.e. Eq. (25)) is because
of neglecting the mid-plane stretching effect in this formula.
To validate the universal pull-in formula when the effect of vdW force is taken into
account, consider a gold nano/micro-beam with properties listed in Table 6. Hamaker
constant for this system has been presented as A = 44 1020 J by Buks and Roukes [28].
Pull-in voltages obtained by universal pull-in formula (i.e. Eq. (24)) and the present
iterative approach for a system with properties presented in Table 6 are compared with each
other in Table 7. Based on the results of this table, one can observe the accuracy of Eq. (24)
for nano/micro-beams actuated by both electrical and vdW loadings. It should be noted that
the accuracy of this equation will be increased, by increasing in the applied axial force.

16

Based on the results of Tables 4 and 7, one can observe the accuracy of Eq. (24) for
systems with small gap parameter. Therefore, this equation has been introduced for predicting
pull-in voltage for nano/micro-systems with small initial gap. It is noted that one can utilize
universal graphs presented in Fig. 6 for systems with large gap parameter.

4.3. Universal graphs for pull-in instability under only vdW attraction
Pull-in instability can be observed in a nano/micro-beam excited by only vdW attraction.
To describe such conditions, the electrostatic parameter is set to zero (i.e. = 0 ) and the
variation of mid-point deflection versus the vdW parameter is plotted in Fig. 7. Based on this
figure, by increasing in the values of vdW parameter, the deflection of nano/micro-beam may
be increased and when this parameter reaches its critical value, the nano/micro-beam
suddenly collapses toward its substrate. It is noted that the infinity slop can be also observed
in this case.
The maximum allowable length (the detachment length) and the minimum allowable gap
for an electrically actuated nano/micro-system can be determined using the critical value of
vdW parameter. Due to the linear relationships which can be observed in pull-in instability
under electrical load, a linear variation of critical vdW parameter (i.e. 3Cr ) versus N and
can be guessed. Fig. 8 illustrates the variation of 3Cr versus N in some constant gap
parameters.
Based on the results of Fig. 8, one can see parallel lines for large gap parameters and
almost parallel lines for systems with small initial gaps. Therefore, it can be concluded that
the critical vdW parameter just like the pull-in parameter varies linearly versus axial force
and almost linearly versus the gap parameter. Since initial gap in most of the electrically
actuated nano/micro-systems is quite small (e.g. 0 6 ), one can represent another
universal pull-in formula for such systems. This formula is called universal vdW pull-in
17

formula in this paper. It is noted that one can utilize the results of Fig. 8 and a linear
interpolation between them for cases with large gap parameter through the procedure
explained in previous section. The universal vdW pull-in formula is

3Cr = 1.2N + 0.62 + 50.29

(27)

It should be noted that if the parameters N and in Eq. (27) are set to zero, the critical
vdW parameter will be obtained through a distributed linear beam model without the effect of
axial residual stress. Using Eq. (10) one can obtain the minimum allowable gap and the
detachment length for such model as

Lmax = ^ d 4 Eh 3 / A , d min =

1 4
L A / Eh 3
^

(28)

where

^ = 2.239

(29)

Lin and Zhao [16] also determined such equation based on a linear spring-mass model. They
calculated ^ analytically as

^ = 2.121

(30)

It is noted that the small difference between these two coefficients (i.e. the present ^ and that
obtained by Lin and Zhao [16]) is due to the fact that they had been used lump model instead
of a distributed parameter model.
It is worth noting that although Eqs. (24) and (27) can be useful for predicting pull-in
voltage and the critical dimensions for most of electrically actuated nano/micro-beams, the
more accurate results can be obtained by solving Eq. (9) through present iterative approach.
In other words, the present universal formulas are useful for the first step in designing

18

N/MEMS devices and more accurate simulations as well as some experimental validations
must be employed for finalizing the design.

5. Conclusions

The main goal of present study was to provide explicit formulas to predict pull-in voltage,
detachment length and minimum allowable gap for a fully clamped electrically actuated
nano/micro-beam affected by vdW attraction. To this end, a non-linear Euler-Bernoulli beam
model was utilized which accounts for the axial residual stress, the geometric non-linearity of
mid-plane stretching as well as the inherent non-linearity of electrical and vdW loadings. The
boundary value differential equation that governs the nano/micro-beam equilibrium was
reduced to a non-linear algebraic equation through single term Galerkin based ROM and
solved iteratively. The model's predictions for pull-in voltages were compared with some
previous semi-analytical and numerical results as well as experimental observations available
in the literature. Furthermore, the variation of non-dimensional pull-in and vdW parameters
versus the other dimensionless parameters of the system was investigated using some
universal graphs. It was observed that the non-dimensional pull-in and vdW parameters vary
linearly versus the other dimensionless parameters of the problem. Based on this fact, some
linear formulas were introduced to predict pull-in voltage, detachment length and minimum
allowable gap for clamped-clamped nano/micro-beams. These linear equations were also
reduced to a couple of universal pull-in formulas for systems with small initial gap. The
results of introduced universal pull-in formulas were also compared and validated with those
obtained by some previous closed-form equations and present iterative method as well as
available experimental data in the literature.

19

Acknowledgement

The authors wish to express appreciation to Research Deputy of Ferdowsi University of

Mashhad for supporting this project by grant No.: 24331-19/9/91.

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[4] G.I. Taylor, The Coalescence of Closely Spaced Drops When They are at Different
Electric Potentials, Proc. of Roy. Soc. A, 1968, pp. 423-434.

[5] P.M. Osterberg, Electrostatically Actuated Microelectromechanical Test Structures for

Material Property Measurement, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,
Massachusetts, USA, 1995.

[6] H.A.C. Tilmans, R. Legtenberg, Electrostatically Driven Vacuum-Encapsulated

Polysilicon Resonators - Part II:Theory and Performance, Sensor Actuat. A-Phys., 45
(1994) 67-84.

20

[7] E.M. Abdel-Rahman, M.I. Younis, A.H. Nayfeh, Characterization of the Mechanical
Behavior of an Electrically Actuated Microbeam, J. Micromech. Microeng., 12 (2002)
759-766.

[8] M.I. Younis, E.M. Abdel-Rahman, A.H. Nayfeh, A Reduced-Order Model for Electrically
Actuated Microbeam-Based MEMS, J. Microelectromech S., 12 (2003) 672-680.

[9] S. Krylov, Lyapunov Exponents as a Criterion for the Dynamic Pull-In Instability of
Electrostatically Actuated Microstructures, Int. J. Nonlin. Mech., 42 (2007) 626-642.

[10] R.C. Batra, M. Porfiri, D. Spinello, Vibrations of Narrow Microbeams Predeformed by

an Electric Field, J. Sound Vib., 309 (2008) 600-612.

[11] P.C.P. Chao, C.W. Chiu, T.H. Liu, DC Dynamic Pull-In Predictions for a Generalized
ClampedClamped Microbeam Based on a Continuous Model and Bifurcation
Analysis, J. Micromech. Microeng., 18 (2008) 115008.

[12] M. Mojahedi, M. Moghimi Zand, M.T. Ahmadian, Static Pull-In Analysis of

Electrostatically Actuated Microbeams Using Homotopy Perturbation Method, Appl.
Math. Model., 34 (2010) 1032-1041.

[13] E.M. Lifshitz, The Theory of Molecular Attractive Forces between Solids, Sov. Phys.
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[14] H. Liu, S. Gao, S. Niu, L. Jin, Analysis on the Adhesion of Microcomb Structure in
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21

[15] S.K. Lamoreaux, The Casimir Force: Background, Experiments, and Applications, Rep.
Prog. Phys., 68 (2005) 201-236.

[16] W.H. Lin, Y.P. Zhao, Dynamic Behavior of Nanoscale Electrostatic Actuators, Chin.
Phys. Lett., 20 (2003) 2070-2073.

[17] A. Ramezani, A. Alasty, J. Akbari, Closed-Form Solutions of the Pull-In Instability in

Nano-Cantilevers under Electrostatic and Intermolecular Surface Forces, Int. J. Solids
Struct., 44 (2007) 4925-4941.

[18] X.L. Jia, J. Yang, S. Kitipornchai, C.W. Lim, Free Vibration of Geometrically Nonlinear
Micro-Switches under Electrostatic and Casimir Forces, Smart Mater. Struct., 19
(2010) 115028.

[19] M. Moghimi Zand, M.T. Ahmadian, Dynamic Pull-In Instability of Electrostatically

Actuated Beams Incorporating Casimir and van der Waals Forces, J. Mech. Eng. Sci.,
224 (2010) 2037-2047.

[20] J.N. Israelachvili, Intermolecular and Surface Forces, 3rd ed., Elsevier, University of
California, Santa Barbara, California, 2011.

[21] J. Qian, C. Liu, D.C. Zhang, Y.P. Zhao, Residual Stresses in Microelectromechanical
System, Journal of Mechanical Strength, 23 (2001) 393-401.

[22] J.N. Reddy, Energy Principles and Variational Methods in Applied Mechanics, John
Wiley and Sons, New York, 2002.

[23] B. Balachandran, E. Magrab, Vibrations, 2nd ed., Cengage Learning, Toronto, 2009.
22

[24] A.R. Askari, M. Tahani, Analytical Approximations to Nonlinear Vibration of a

Clamped Nanobeam in Presence of The Casimir Force, Int. J. Aerosp. Lightweight
Struct., 2 (2012) 317-334.

[25] J.H. Kuang, C.J. Chen, Dynamic Characteristics of Shaped Micro-Actuators Solved
Using the Differential Quadrature Method, J. Micromech. Microeng., 14 (2004) 647655.

[26] A.H. Nayfeh, M.I. Younis, E.M. Abdel-Rahman, Reduced-Order Models for MEMS
Applications, Nonlinear Dynam., 41 (2005) 211-236.

[27] R.C. Batra, M. Porfiri, D. Spinello, Review of Modeling Electrostatically Actuated

Microelectromechanical Systems, Smart Mater. Struct., 16 (2007) R23-31.

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Micromechanical Systems, Phys. Rev. B, (2001) 63033402.

23

Figure captions
Fig. 1. Schematic of an electrically actuated nano/micro-beam under the effect of vdW force.
Fig. 2. Comparison between present results and those obtained by Abdel-Rahman et al. [7] through
shooting method. Solid lines depict present findings and markers display shooting method results for a
micro-beam with 3 = N = 0 .
Fig. 3. Comparison between present results and those obtained through ninth-order ROM [9] for a
poly-silicon micro-beam with properties presented in Table 3.
Fig. 4. Comparison between present results and those obtained through NFEM [19] for a nano/microbeam with dimensionless properties N = 0 and = 6 .
Fig. 5. Universal graphs for pull-in instability.
Fig. 6. Fitted lines to the results of universal graphs and their corresponding equations. (a) N = 0 and
(b) 3 = 0 .
Fig. 7. pull-in instability under vdW attraction.
Fig.8. Fitted lines to the results of vdW pull-in universal graph and their corresponding equations.

24

Fig. 1. Schematic of an electrically actuated nano/micro-beam under the effect of vdW force.

0.64
1

0.48

0.32
1.
2.
3.
4.

0.16

30

60

90

120

=1.5
=10
=30
=50

150

180

Fig. 2. Comparison between present results and those obtained by Abdel-Rahman et al. [7] through
shooting method. Solid lines depict present findings and markers display shooting method results for a
micro-beam with 3 = N = 0 .

25

0.5

0.375

Present
Krylov [9]

0.25

0.125

10

20

30

40

50

V (V)

Fig. 3. Comparison between present results and those obtained through ninth-order ROM [9] for a
poly-silicon micro-beam with properties presented in Table 3.

80
Present
Moghimi Zand and Ahmadian [19]

PI

60

40

20

10

20

30

40

50

3
Fig. 4. Comparison between present results and those obtained through NFEM [19] for a nano/microbeam with dimensionless properties N = 0 and = 6 .

26

3 = 0, N =

500

250

315

30

60

90

120

N = 0, =

420

PI

210

96

105

54

24
6
0

16

24

32

40

30

90

120

375

54
24
6
0

125

-4

12

28

27

150
96

250

(d) 0-20

150

3 = 0, =

Fig. 5. Universal graphs for pull-in instability.

60

500
150

315

(c)

210

(b) 00

150

PI

0
10
20
30
40

105

125

(a)

N = 0, 3 =

420

PI

PI

375

60
40
20
0
-20

44

60


420

PI = -1.4093 + 69.3, = 0

PI

315

PI = -1.4983 + 78.22, = 6
PI = -1.7863 + 114.4, = 24

210

PI = -2.0493 + 184.98, = 54
PI = -2.1693 + 286.94, = 96

105

PI = -2.2923 + 419.02, = 150

(a)

16

24

32

40

500

PI = 1.677N + 69.62, = 0

PI

375

PI = 1.655N + 79.02, = 6
PI = 1.518N + 116.1, = 24

250

PI = 1.373N + 186.3, = 54
PI = 1.289N + 287.9, = 96

125

PI = 1.242N + 419.7, = 150

(b)

0
-20

-4

12

28

44

60

Fig. 6. Fitted lines to the results of universal graphs and their corresponding equations. (a) N = 0 and
(b) 3 = 0 .

28

0.5
0.4
N = 0, = 0
w

0.3
0.2
0.1
0

10.2

20.4

30.6

40.8

51

3
Fig. 7. pull-in instability under vdW attraction.

260

Cr

195

130

65

0
-20

-4

12

28

44

60

3 Cr = 1.202 N + 50.29, = 0
3 Cr = 1.194 N + 54.04, = 6

Present itrative appraoch, = 0

Present itrative appraoch, = 6
Present itrative appraoch, = 24
Present itrative appraoch, = 54

3 Cr = 1.128 N + 68.96, = 24

Present itrative appraoch, = 96

Present itrative appraoch, = 150

3 Cr = 1.013 N + 99.32, = 54
3 Cr = 0.923 N + 145, = 96
3 Cr = 0.868 N + 205.1, = 150

Fig.8. Fitted lines to the results of vdW pull-in universal graph and their corresponding equations.

29

Graphical abstract

(c)

60
40
20
0
-20

375
250
125
0

30

60
90
Gap parameter

120

150

420

(b)

500

N = 0, =

420

150

315
210

96

105

54

24
6
0

16
24
vdW parameter

32

40

30

Dimensionless pull-in voltage

Dimensionless pull-in voltage

(a)

3 = 0, N =

500

Dimensionless pull-in voltage

Dimensionless pull-in voltage

Universal graphs for pull-in instability of micro-beam based MEMS devices are presented. These
graphs show some interesting linear relationships between dimensionless parameters of the system.

(d)

N = 0, 3 =

315

0
10
20
30
40

210
105

30

60
90
Gap parameter

120

3 = 0, =

375

150
96
54
24
6
0

250
125
0
-20

150

-4

12
28
Axial force parameter

44

60

Table captions
Table 1. Geometric and material properties of the poly-silicon micro-beam.
Table 2. A comparison between pull-in voltages (V) calculated by different methods for micro-beams
with the geometric and material properties presented in Table 1.
Table 3. Geometric and material properties of the Krylov's poly-silicon micro-beam [9].
Table 4. Validation of universal pull-in formula for a poly-silicon micro-beam with properties
presented in Table 1.
Table 5. Comparisons between pull-in voltages calculated using the results of Fig. 6 and that obtained
by present iterative approach and Chao's closed-form equation for a poly-silicon micro-beam with
properties presented in Table 1, length L = 510m and initial gap d = 4m .

Table 6. Geometric and material properties of the gold nano/micro-beam.

Table 7. Validation of universal pull-in formula for a gold nano/micro-beam with properties listed in

Table 6.

31


Table 1

Geometric and material properties of the poly-silicon micro-beam.

b (m)

h (m)

d (m)

E (GPa)

(kg/m3 )

(MPa)

100

1.5

1.18

151

0.3

2332

Table 2

A comparison between pull-in voltages (V) calculated by different methods for micro-beams with the
geometric and material properties presented in Table 1.
L (m)

Experiment [6]

DQM [25]

Present iterative approach

210

27.95 0.05

28.10

28.00

310

13.78 0.03

14.00

13.97

410

9.13 0.02

8.90

8.85

510

6.57 0.02

6.40

6.35

Table 3

Geometric and material properties of the Krylov's poly-silicon micro-beam [9].

L (m)

b (m)

h (m)

d (m)

E (GPa)

(kg/m3 )

(MPa)

300

20

169

0.28

2332

32

Table 4

Validation of universal pull-in formula for a poly-silicon micro-beam with properties presented in
Table 1.

V PI (V)
L (m)

Experiment

Present iterative

Universal pull-in

Chao's closed-form

[6]

approach

formula (Eq. (24))

formula (Eq. (25))

210

27.95 0.05

28.00

28.15

27.61

310

13.78 0.03

13.97

14.08

13.90

410

9.13 0.02

8.85

8.88

8.83

510

6.57 0.02

6.35

6.36

6.36

Table 5

Comparisons between pull-in voltages calculated using the results of Fig. 6 and that obtained by
present iterative approach and Chao's closed-form equation for a poly-silicon micro-beam with
properties presented in Table 1, length L = 510m and initial gap d = 4m .
Interpolated pull-in

Present iterative

voltage

approach

48.04 V

47. 95 V

Chao's closed-form formula (Eq. (25))

39.71 V

Table 6

Geometric and material properties of the gold nano/micro-beam.

L (m)

b (m)

h (nm)

E (GPa)

(kg/m3 )

A (10 20 J)

100

80

0.42

19300

44

33

Table 7

Validation of universal pull-in formula for a gold nano/micro-beam with properties listed in Table 6.

d (nm)

15

20

25

50

r (MPa)

Present iterative approach

Universal pull-in formula (Eq. (24))

0.43

0.44

10

0.49

0.49

20

0.54

0.54

1.11

1.12

10

1.17

1.17

20

1.22

1.22

1.69

1.70

10

1.76

1.76

20

1.83

1.83

5.06

5.11

10

5.24

5.28

20

5.42

5.45

34