Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 February 2011
A miniaturized, polysilicon version of a xylophone bar magnetometer (with dimensions on the order of microns) has been fabricated by microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) processing techniques. All devices tested to date have performed extremely well in static magnetic fields and exhibit mechanical quality factors, Q, of up to 30,000 at reduced pressures. The resonance frequency of the fundamental flexural mode of vibration of these polysilicon xylophone bars has been found to be a sensitive function of the torsional stiffness of the support arms, in quantitative accord with an analytical model based on Bernoulli-Euler beam theory.