This project is funded as a part of the EEC initiative on Research Centers - Small Firms Collaborative R&D. The cooperating partners are the Center for the Design of Analog-Digital Integrated Circuits (CDADIC) at Washington State University, and Analogy, Inc., a small firm located in Beaverton, OR. The work will draw upon compact device modeling carried out at CDADIC that deals with micromachined structures mainly applicable to pressure and inertial sensors. The study to be conducted under the present award will extend this concept to more generic integrated microsystems which will involve more than just electrical-mechanical coupling, and will provide a structured basis through which new public domain device models can be readily developed and incorporated into microsystem design. The work will involve close collaboration between the Center and Analogy, Inc., which is the leading developer of multi-domain, mixed-mode simulation software. The primary product, the Saber simulator, which is now a standard for automotive and aerospace system simulation, is ideally suited for treating the multiple and interconnected physical domains which arise in microsystems. The development of of simulation tools and methods for integrated microsystem design will encourage standardization, validation, and model accuracy performance measures to emerge which will support the growing field of integrated sensors, transducers, micro-electro-mechanical systems, and microanalytical systems.
