This work presents a novel ultra-high frequency Lamb mode Aluminum nitride piezoelectric resonator with enhanced quality factors ( Q ). With slots introduced in the vicinity of the tether support end, the elastic waves leaking from the tether sidewalls can be reflected, which effectively reduces the anchor loss while retaining size compactness and mechanical robustness. Comprehensive analysis was carried out to provide helpful guidance for obtaining optimal slot designs. For various resonators with frequencies ranging from 630 MHz to 1.97 GHz, promising Q enhancements up to 2 times have all been achieved. The 1.97 GHz resonator implemented excellent f × Q product up to 6.72 × 10 ¹² and low motional resistance down to 340 Ω, which is one of the highest performances among the reported devices. The devices with enhanced Q values as well as compact size possess potential application in advanced radio frequency front end transceivers.

This work presents a silicon-based capacitively transduced width extensional mode (WEM) MEMS rectangular plate resonator with quality factor (Q) of over 10,000 at a frequency of greater than 1 GHz. The Q value, determined by various loss mechanisms, was analyzed and quantified via numerical calculation and simulation. The energy loss of high order WEMs is dominated by anchor loss and phonon-phonon interaction dissipation (PPID). High-order resonators possess high effective stiffness, resulting in large motional impedance. To suppress anchor loss and reduce motional impedance, a novel combined tether was designed and comprehensively optimized. The resonators were batch fabricated based on a reliable and simple silicon-on-insulator (SOI)-based fabrication process. The combined tether experimentally contributes to low anchor loss and motional impedance. Especially in the 4th WEM, the resonator with a resonance frequency of 1.1 GHz and a Q of 10,920 was demonstrated, corresponding to the promising f × Q product of 1.2 × 10¹³. By using combined tether, the motional impedance decreases by 33% and 20% in 3rd and 4th modes, respectively. The WEM resonator proposed in this work has potential application for high-frequency wireless communication systems.

This work investigates the dominant energy dissipations of the multi-frequency whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonators to provide an insight into the loss mechanisms of the devices. An extensive theory for each loss source was established and experimentally testified. The squeezed film damping (SFD) is a major loss for all the WGMs at atmosphere, which is distinguished from traditional bulk acoustic wave (BAW) resonators where the high-order modes suffer less from the air damping. In vacuum, the SFD is negligible, and the frequency-dependent Akhiezer damping (AKE) has significant effects on different order modes. For low-order WGMs, the AKE is limited, and the anchor loss behaves as the dominant loss. For high-order modes with an extended nodal region, the anchor loss is reduced, and the AKE determines the Q values. Substantial Q enhancements over four times and an excellent f × Q product up to 6.36 × 10¹³ at 7 K were achieved.

This work presents three new narrowband radio frequency (RF) microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) filters made from mechanical or electrically coupled resonators with a q uality factor Q of over 10 000. A low-stiffness rectangular-frame mechanical coupling beam (RFCB) is designed, and a filter with an RFCB is successfully developed with a center frequency of 75.5 MHz and a percent bandwidth (BW) of 0.4%. In addition, a tunable narrowband filter is achieved with a mechanically coupled four-disk linear structure filter. The center frequencies are 74.47 ± 0.54 MHz and the percent BW range is 0.48%–2.2%. In order to further simplify the architecture of the filter, a filter based on a single whisper gallery mode disk resonator is demonstrated, which has a center frequency of 79.42 MHz and a BW of only 0.25%. The three different RF MEMS filters have potential applications in wireless communication systems.

This paper presents a novel Π-shaped bulk acoustic resonator (ΠBAR) with low bias voltages. Concave flanges were coupled with straight beams to effectively enlarge the transduction area. A silicon-on-insulator(SOI)-based fabrication process was developed to produce nanoscale spacing gaps. The tether designs were optimized to minimize the anchor loss. With a substantially improved electromechanical coupling coefficient, the high-stiffness ΠBAR can be driven into vibrations with low bias voltages down to 3 V. The resonator, vibrating at 20 MHz, implements Q values of 3600 and 4950 in air and vacuum, respectively. Strategies to further improve the resonator performance and robustness were investigated. The resonator has promising IC compatibility and could have potential for the development of high-performance timing reference devices.

This work investigates the dominant loss mechanisms of the multi-frequency whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonators theoretically and experimentally, which provides a deep understanding about the working principles of the devices and guidance on their high-end applications. For the first time, the distinct Akhiezer damping (AKE) effects on various order WGMs were comprehensively clarified. At atmosphere, the air damping, which is conventionally expected to be negligible in high-order bulk acoustic wave (BAW) modes, is nonnegligible for all the WGMs. In vacuum, substantial Q enhancements more than two times were obtained. The high-order WGMs benefit more f × Q improvement from the high vacuum than the low-order ones, achieving a promising f × Q product of 1.16 × 10¹³. What’s more, the Q dynamics over a wide temperature range were characterized, which matched well with the theoretical analysis. The AKE is comparable with anchor loss in low-order modes, while it becomes dominated in the high-order ones. Therefore, the high-order WGMs exhibit higher Q enhancements at cryogenic temperatures. An excellent f × Q product up to 5.91 × 10¹³ was implemented at 7 K.