A review on vibrating beam-based micro/nano-gyroscopes

A comprehensive review of the modeling approaches used to simulate the behaviors of micro/nano-gyroscopes is presented. The performance and sensitivity of these inertial sensors can be significantly improved through understanding their governing dynamics and exploiting specific phenomena and distinctive features. Such understanding can be developed by solving and analyzing their governing equations and boundary conditions that may comprise a set of highly nonlinear partial differential equations. The operating principle of vibrating beam gyroscopes is described and their main actuation and sensing mechanisms are reviewed and discussed. The multi-fidelity modeling approaches that have been used for the design, performance analysis, and control of vibratory micro/nano-gyroscopes are consolidated and reviewed. The use of these mathematical models has opened doors for the development of new sensing designs with unprecedented sensitivity and extended operating range. To date, extensive research has been conducted on modeling and simulations of micro/nano-gyroscopes. However, several open research topics have not been thoroughly explored yet. These include nanoscale experimentation for model validation, damage/fatigue modeling, and self-powered energy harvesting gyroscope systems. This review presents the current state of the art and highlights promising research directions for continued technological advancement of micro/nano-gyroscopes.