Design & simulation of a mechanical amplifier for inertial sensing applications

This paper describes the design and simulation of a mechanical amplifier used to improve the performance of a capacitive accelerometer. It comprises a long silicon beam attached to the proof mass and it amplifies the sensed motion based on the leverage system [1]. Finite element simulations have been used to validate the concept and facilitate the design. Although increasing the overall accelerometer dimensions, a mechanical amplifier provides amplification without adding significant noise to the system, unlike its electrical counterpart. Moreover, the increased amplification of the motion obtained with longer beam length results in higher sensitivity.