Dynamic Slingshot Operation for Low-Operation- Voltage Nanoelectromechanical (NEM) Memory Switches

A dynamic slingshot pull-in operation is presented by using the influence of inertia and damping on the nanoelectromechanical (NEM) memory switch operation. To confirm the validity of the proposed idea, a finite element analysis (FEA) simulation, that reflects the actual cantilever beam structure, is performed, and an analytical one-dimensional (1D), the parallel plate model is tested. According to the analytical and FEA data, the dynamic slingshot pull-in voltage can be achieved ~0.78 times and ~0.73 times lower than conventional pull-in voltage under near-vacuum conditions, respectively. It is also shown that the proposed dynamic slingshot operation is more effective for lowering operation voltage (VDD) and boosting the chip density of complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)NEM hybrid reconfigurable logic (RL) circuits than the static slingshot operation.