Influence of Nonuniform Micron-Scale Strain Distributions on the Electrical Reorientation of Magnetic Microstructures in a Composite Multiferroic Heterostructure.

Composite multiferroic systems, consisting of a piezoelectric substrate coupled with a ferromagnetic thin film, are of great interest from a technological point of view because they offer a path toward the development of ultralow power magnetoelectric devices. The key aspect of those systems is the possibility to control magnetization via an electric field, relying on the magneto-elastic coupling at the interface between the piezoelectric and the ferromagnetic components. Accordingly, a direct measurement of both the electrically induced magnetic behavior and of the piezo-strain driving such behavior is crucial for better understanding and further developing these materials systems.

Grasper integrated tri-axial force sensor system for robotic minimally invasive surgery.

This paper describes the design, microfabrication, and characterization of a miniature force sensor for providing tactile feedback in robotic surgical systems. We demonstrate for the first time a microfabricated sensor that can provide triaxial sensing (normal, x-shear, y-shear) in a single sensor element that can be integrated with commercial robotic surgical graspers. Features of this capacitive force sensor include differential sensing in the shear directions as well as a design where all electrical connections are on one side, leaving the backside pristine as the sensing face.

Electrically driven magnetic domain wall rotation in multiferroic heterostructures to manipulate suspended on-chip magnetic particles.

In this work, we experimentally demonstrate deterministic electrically driven, strain-mediated domain wall (DW) rotation in ferromagnetic Ni rings fabricated on piezoelectric [Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3]0.66-[PbTiO3]0.34 (PMN-PT) substrates.

Dielectrophoresis-assembled zeolitic imidazolate framework nanoparticle-coupled resonators for highly sensitive and selective gas detection.

This work reports on zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF)-coupled microscale resonators for highly sensitive and selective gas detection. The combination of microscale resonators and nanoscale materials simultaneously permits the benefit of larger capture area for adsorption from the resonator and enhanced surface adsorption capacity from the nanoscale ZIF structure. Dielectrophoresis (DEP) was demonstrated as a novel method for directly assembling concentrated ZIF nanoparticles on targeted regions of silicon resonant sensors.