POLYDIMETHYLSILOXANE, A PHOTOCURABLE RUBBERELASTIC POLYMER USED AS SPRING MATERIAL IN MICROMECHANICAL SENSORS

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is a commercially available physically and chemically stable photocurable silicone rubber which has a unique fle xibility (G approximate to 250 kPa) at room temperature. Further prope rties of PDMS are a low elasticity change versus temperature (1.1kPa/d egrees C), no elasticity change versus frequency and a high compressib ility. PDMS is an interesting polymer to be used as spring material in micromechanical sensors such as accelerometers. The spring constant o f the PDMS structures was theoretically calculated and measurements we re done on accelerometers with PDMS springs to validate the theory. Th e measured and calculated spring constants showed a good correspondenc e, so the measurement results showed that the PDMS structures can succ essfully be used as mechanical springs.