Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) are used in applications ranging from consumer electronics to medical diagnostics. Alternatively, optical sensors offer low-noise, remote read-out via optical fiber, and are insensitive to electromagnetic interference. We demonstrate micro-opto-mechanical sensors (MOMS) in siliconnitride photonic technology. Experimental results and design trade-offs of pressure, sound, and ultrasound sensors are reported. Transparency for visible light offers prospective applications in life sciences, such as photo-acoustics.@en

This paper presents a new type of accelerometer, the Micro-Opto-Mechanical Accelerometer (MOMA). Micro-opto-mechanical pressure sensors and microphones demonstrated already the excellent sensitivity on a very large pressure range which is possible thanks to their photonic read-out (1Pa precision over kPa range). In this paper, we design in the same technology an optical accelerometer using analytical equations as well as Finite Element simulations. The model takes into account the mechanical deformation of the device, its effect on the elongation of the waveguide, and also includes the optical losses. Using the opto-mechanical model, an optimum design is obtained varying device dimensions and waveguide positions in order to increase the accelerometer sensitivity.

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Micro-opto-mechanical Microphone (MOMM) based on integrated optical Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZI) are promising for future application in medical environments. However, the design of next generation MOMM systems on chip remains challenging due to the intrinsic multi-physics characteristics related to acoustic, mechanical, optical and electrical effects. We therefore developed a methodology composed of acoustic, mechanic, optical, and electronic sections for fast design of high performance MOMM systems. The feasibility has been demonstrated as the operational characteristics of the fabricated MOMM (i.e. resonance frequency, dynamic range, the sensitivity and SNR) align well with the measured references.

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