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Accurate Force Measurements for Miniature Mechanical Systems: A Review of Progress
Published
Author(s)
Lowell P. Howard, Joseph Fu
Abstract
A survey of nanonewton force calibration techniques suitable for micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) is presented. The reviewed techniques include: mass-derived force, pendulums, calibrated master spings, resonance and electromagnetic techniques. Considerable background material is provided to support the hypothesis that virtual power methods, such as those employed on the NIST watt balance, are applicable to the MEMS force calibration problem. A review of progress at NIST on two prototype nanowatt balances designed for MEMS calibration is given.
Proceedings Title
Proceedings of SPIE, Microlithography and Metrology in Micromachining III, Craig R. Friedrich, Akira Umeda, Editors
Howard, L.
and Fu, J.
(1997),
Accurate Force Measurements for Miniature Mechanical Systems: A Review of Progress, Proceedings of SPIE, Microlithography and Metrology in Micromachining III, Craig R. Friedrich, Akira Umeda, Editors, Austin, TX, USA
(Accessed October 13, 2025)