THIN-FILM ZNO AS MICROMECHANICAL ACTUATOR AT LOW-FREQUENCIES

A new model is proposed for the low-frequency piezoelectric activity of ZnO films grown on CVD SiO2. In this MOS structure, with ZnO as the semiconductor, a depletion layer is induced by means of a d.c. bias voltage. Using standard semiconductor theory, an expression is derived relating the electric field in this depletion layer with the driving a.c. and d.c. voltages. Due to the built-in charge at the ZnO-SiO2 interface, a depletion layer exists, even when no d.c. bias is applied. We measured the vibration amplitude at resonance of the tip of a silicon cantilever, upon which the MOS structure was deposited, as function of a.c. and d.c. voltages. The results show good agreement with calculated curves. Therefore, it can be concluded that thin-film ZnO can be used as a piezoelectric actuator for micromechanical devices working at low frequencies. © 1990.