Modeling and design of an ultra low-power NEMS relays: application to logic gate inverters

In this work we propose a design based on a nanoelectromechanical relay acting as a logic gate inverter. The proposed inverter is made of a double cantilever nanobeam actuated by a fixed central electrode carrying the input signals. The static and dynamic behaviors of the ohmic nanoinverter gate are investigated using an electromechanical mathematical model that fully incorporates nonlinear form of the electrostatic force and the ohmic contact of the nanobeams’ tip with the fixed output electrode. The derived electromechanical model is used for electrical and energy analysis. Simulations are used to confirm the functionality of the inverter. The analysis of the switching energy showed very low power consumption compared to classical CMOS inverters. It is shown that the proposed inverter dissipates only 0.45 fJ to code a “1” logic-state and 0.023 fJ to code a “0” logic-state.