Non-linear operation of nanomechnical systems combining photothermal excitation and magneto-motive detection

We present a non-linear operation of a nanomechanical beam resonator by photothermal excitation at 4 K. The resonators dimensions are 10 mu m in length, 200 nm in width, and 200 nm in height. The actuation mechanism is based on a pulsed diode laser focused onto the centre of the beam resonator. Thermally induced stress caused by the different thermal expansion coefficients of the bi-layer system periodically deflects the resonator. Magnetomotively detected amplitudes up to 150 nm are reached at the fundamental resonance mode at a frequency of 8.9 MHz. Furthermore, the third eigenmode of the resonator at a frequency 36 MHz is also excited. We conclude that the photothermal excitation at 4 K should be applicable up to the GHz regime, the operation in the non-linear regime can be used for performance enhancement of nanomechanical systems, and the combination of photothermal excitation and magneto-motive detection avoids undesired cross talk.