Modeling and analysis of a novel combined peninsula-island structure diaphragm for ultra-low pressure sensing with high sensitivity

A novel combined peninsula-island structure diaphragm has been developed with four pairs of peninsula and island structures as well as four gaps between them. When a pressure is applied to the diaphragm, the major strain energy of the diaphragm is locked in the position above each gap, which is called the stress concentration region (SCR). Also, minimal strain energy is wasted outside the SCR. Therefore, this novel diaphragm is favorable in obtaining high sensitivity for a micro-electromechanical system piezoresistive ultra-low pressure sensor. In order to optimize the diaphragm structure, the partial differential equation governing the diaphragm deflection has been given under pressure. The theoretical analysis solutions are obtained based on the theory of the Navier trigonometric series and the mirror image method, and in accordance with the finite element method simulation results. Finally, a sensor with the proposed diaphragm is designed with the working range of 0-500 Pa and has sensitivity above 0.055 mV V-1 Pa-1. In comparison to a flat diaphragm with the same dimensions, this novel diaphragm achieves a sensitivity level increased by 256%, a nonlinearity reduced by 79%, and a resonance frequency increased by 5.5%. In addition, the proposed theoretical analysis solution of the diaphragm can also be applied to other kinds of diaphragm with different islands to achieve optimization.