A New Conditioning Method for PZT-Based Microsensors

A conditioning circuit able to simultaneously actuate and measure the output of an integrated MEMS cantilever mass-sensor fabricated in PiezoMUMPs technology is presented. The MEMS is a resonator with an embedded aluminum nitride (AlN) layer. The basic idea is to use the active layer properties to excite the device and simultaneously read the mechanical response by detecting the resonant frequency. In order to do this a suitable conditioning system has been developed, and a hybrid solution based on microelectronic devices has been realized. The proposed measurement system allows to detect the main parameters characterizing the electro-mechanical device response in real time, allowing the monitoring of the sensed quantity.