Nanocantilever Beams ─ Modeling, Fabrication, and Applications

The cantilever beam is an important structure of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices. This simple structure was integrated in silicon 30 years ago using microfabrication techniques specific to integrated circuits. Since this pioneering study was performed, a large number or research groups have joined this field, greatly expanding the scope of microcantilever beam structure for sensor applications. The special advantages of these types of sensors rely on their versatile qualities such as microscale dimensions of the sensor area, label-free detection, high sensitivity, simple integration with electric circuits, and the potential for simultaneous detection of tens or even hundreds of targets by using arrays of cantilever beams. The performance of these devices has dramatically improved through the development of new materials and nanotechnologies. Micro- and nanosized cantilever beams are robust devices whose high sensitivity and selectivity allow them to detect physical, chemical, and biological components by measuring changes in cantilever bending or in resonant frequency.

This book is focused on the fabrication and applications of cantilever beams with nanoscale dimensions. The nanometer-size mechanical structures show exceptional properties generated by their reduced dimensions. These properties enable new sensing concepts and transduction mechanisms that will allow enhancing the performances of the actual devices to their fundamental limits.

The book is important in the field because there are no other books with similar topics focused only on nanocantilever beam. Many scientists are conducting research in the area of nanocantilever beams. The applications of nanocantilever beams are diverse. Researchers will be particularly benefitted by reading the book in order to consolidate their background in the area of nanocantilever beam fabrication and applications.

The aim of the book is to provide an excellent scientific reference for an audience with a diversity of backgrounds and interests, including students, academic researchers, industry specialists, policymakers, and enthusiasts.

Mona E. Zaghloul is professor of electrical and computer engineering at the George Washington University, Washington, DC, where she is also director of the Institute of MEMS and VLSI Technologies. She received her PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada, in 1975. Prof. Zaghloul received the 50th Gold Jubilee Medal from the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society in recognition for her outstanding contribution to society. She was vice president of the IEEE-CAS Technical Activities (1999–2001) and president of the IEEE Sensors Council for 2008 and 2009. She is a Fellow of the IEEE.

Ioana Voiculescu is associate professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department, City College of New York, New York. She received her PhD in mechanical engineering from the Technical University "Politehnica," Timisoara, Romania, and her ScD in mechanical engineering from the George Washington University, Washington, DC, in 2005. Since 2002, Dr. Voiculescu is a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. She also has two patents in her name.