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ISU researchers have developed a high-sensitivity microelectromechanical system (MEMS), graphene-based pressure sensor that outperforms any existing MEMS-based small footprint pressure sensor.

ISU researchers have developed a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) graphene-based pressure sensor realized by transferring a large area, few-layered graphene on a suspended silicon nitride thin membrane perforated by a periodic array of micro-through-holes. Each through-hole is covered by a circular drum-like graphene layer, namely a graphene “microdrum”. The uniqueness of the sensor design is the fact that introducing the through-hole arrays into the supporting nitride membrane allows generating an increased strain in the graphene membrane over the through-hole array by local deformations of the holes under an applied differential pressure. Further reasons contributing to the increased strain in the devised sensitive membrane include larger deflection of the membrane than that of its imperforated counterpart membrane, and direct bulging of the graphene microdrum under an applied pressure.

• 10X sensitivity compared to other MEMS sensors

• Good linearity over a wide pressure range

• Numerous applications

• Rapidly expanding market

Microsensors

1. Graphene "microdrums" on a freestanding perforated thin membrane for high sensitivity MEMS pressure sensors. Qiugu Wang, Wei Hong, Liang Dong, Nanoscale 2016 Mar;8(14):7663-71