2012/03/26 by Alexander G. Krause, Martin Winger, T. D. Blasius +3 · 1 citation
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced MEMS and NEMS Technologies #Mechanical and Optical Resonators #Photonic and Optical Devices #physics.optics
paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/nphoton.2012.245
16 pages, 9 figures
arxiv created 2012/03/26 · openalex publication_date 2012/10/12 · crossref created 2012/10/12 · crossref issued 2012/10/14 · crossref published 2012/10/14 · crossref published-online 2012/10/14 · crossref published-print 2012/11/01 · arxiv updated 2015/06/04 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · crossref deposited 2023/05/19 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29 · crossref indexed 2026/08/05
The monitoring of accelerations is essential for a variety of applications ranging from inertial navigation to consumer electronics. The basic operation principle of an accelerometer is to measure the displacement of a flexibly mounted test mass; sensitive displacement measurement can be realized using capacitive, piezo-electric, tunnel-current, or optical methods. While optical readout provides superior displacement resolution and resilience to electromagnetic interference, current optical accelerometers either do not allow for chip-scale integration or require bulky test masses. Here we demonstrate an optomechanical accelerometer that employs ultra-sensitive all-optical displacement read-out using a planar photonic crystal cavity monolithically integrated with a nano-tethered test mass of high mechanical Q-factor. This device architecture allows for full on-chip integration and achieves a broadband acceleration resolution of 10 μg/rt-Hz, a bandwidth greater than 20 kHz, and a dynamic range of 50 dB with sub-milliwatt optical power requirements. Moreover, the nano-gram test masses used here allow for optomechanical back-action in the form of cooling or the optical spring effect, setting the stage for a new class of motional sensors.