Magnetostatic micro-actuator based on ultrasoft elastomeric membrane and copper — Permalloy electrodeposited structures

This paper presents different designs of magnetostatic micro-actuators, based on both conventional and integrated micro-coils. A 3-dimensional magnetic circuit made of Permalloy is proposed in order to improve their efficiency. The mobile parts of the micro-actuators are made of ultrasoft elastomeric membranes, bearing deformations up to 850%. This allows the use of pulse actuation, in order to get higher displacement amplitudes, that are up to -100/+200 μm for instantaneous forces of 55 mN. A fully integrated high aspect ratio micro-coil design, based on copper and Permalloy electrodeposited structures, is proposed as an alternative to conventional coils at millimetric size.