A MEMS Sonoluminescent Ultrasonic Sensor

This paper presents the design of a new MEMS ultrasonic sensor that exploits the single bubble sonoluminescence (SBSL) phenomenon to realize a highly efficient transduction mechanism. In the proposed scheme, a thermally generated microbubble is to be stabilized using dielectrophoresis (DEP) techniques in the precise center of a 300 mum high by 150 mum diameter cylindrically shaped MEMS micro-chamber. As the ultrasonic sound waves strike the microbubble, the bubble collapses to emit highly stable light pulses. The emitted light pulses are to be detected using integrated photo-detectors to generate an equivalent electrical signal to realize the transduction process. Since there is no vibrating mechanical structure, the sensor is free of any pull-in phenomenon or stress related affects associated with capacitive type MEMS ultrasonic sensors and can have a much higher dynamic range compared to capacitive type ones