Strain-dependent damping in nanomechanical resonators from thin MoS2 crystals

We investigate the effect of mechanical strain on the dynamics of thin MoS2 nanodrum resonators. Using a piezoelectric crystal, compressive and tensile biaxial strain is induced in initially flat and buckled devices. In the flat device, we observe a remarkable strain-dependence of the resonance line width, while the change in the resonance...

High-quality-factor tantalum oxide nanomechanical resonators by laser oxidation of TaSe2

Controlling the strain in two-dimensional (2D) materials is an interesting avenue to tailor the mechanical properties of nanoelectromechanical systems. Here, we demonstrate a technique to fabricate ultrathin tantalum oxide nanomechanical resonators with large stress by the laser oxidation of nano-drumhead resonators composed of tantalum...

Nanoscale mechanical resonators and oscillators

In this thesis the physics of nanoscale mechanical resonators and oscillators is studied. We discuss two types of resonators. First, a top-down fabricated doubly clamped beam resonator with an integrated piezoelectric actuator is introduced. The second type of resonators are based on layered two-dimensional materials, such as graphene and...

Nonlinear dynamics of a microelectromechanical oscillator with delayed feedback

We study the dynamics of a nonlinear electromechanical oscillator with delayed feedback. Compared to their linear counterparts, we find that the dynamics is dramatically different. The well-known Barkhausen stability criterion ceases to exist, and two modes of operation emerge: one characterized by hysteresis in combination with a bistable...

Strongly coupled modes in a weakly driven micromechanical resonator

We demonstrate a strong coupling between the flexural vibration modes of a clamped-clamped micromechanical resonator vibrating at low amplitudes. This coupling enables the direct measurement of the frequency response via amplitude- and phase modulation schemes using the fundamental mode as a mechanical detector. In the linear regime, a frequency...