A series of microcommutation electrostatic devices with a wide range of operating voltages

The microrelays thus made consist of two dielectric substrates: one of them is thicker (20-30 μm), and the other is thinner (10-15 μm) and has a movable commutation element. After deposition of film electrodes and interconnections, formation of the device is completed by rigidly fastening the two substrates together by welding on coaxial holes and pins. Operating voltage values of such microrelays can range from 50 to 200 V, when the movable anodic alumina element about 5 μm thick is itself used as an insulator. To reduce the operating voltage down to 15-20 V, a design variant with a thin insulator (about 0.5-1.0 μm) was developed. In another design variant, a continuous dielectric layer is replaced with separate dielectric islands in order to prevent emergence of a high residual static charge. Still lower operating voltages can be obtained by reducing the dielectric thickness down to 0.1 μm. In principle, it is possible to design microrelays with operating voltages up to 500 V