Design, technology, numerical simulation and optimization of building blocks of a micro and nano scale tensile testing platform with focus on a piezoresistive force sensor

In this paper, building blocks of a MEMS tensile testing platform are presented. The building blocks include a thermo-mechanical MEMS actuator, driven by an aluminum thin-film heater on a thermal oxide for electrical insulation, a capacitative displacement sensor and a piezoresistive force sensor, capable of measuring forces on a nano-newton scale.