Effect of Metal Coating on Displacement of the Silicon Electrothermal V-Shaped Actuator
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Your results that state that that the silicon EVA with metal coating is able to output larger displacements, with the group with metal coating providing approximately twice the displacement of the group without metal coating at 4V are to be appreciated because for the same displacement, the silicon EVA with metallic coating requires less input voltage than the non-metallic coating group which is an outstanding report in the literature of microactuators. Next step, of course, is to test the results in real applications.
Author Response
Thank you very much for your review and evaluation of the manuscript! Based on your comments and requests, we have partially revised the conclusions of the original manuscript and included some information about future test work in practical applications at the end of the conclusions. Your professional comments have greatly improved the quality of the manuscript. Below are our notes on the revisions based on your comments.
Point 1: Next step, is to test the results in real applications.
Response 1: This study has investigated the influence of different metal coatings on the driving displacement of silicon EVA. Future work will involve experimental research to validate the theoretical models and simulation results. Additionally, further exploration will be conducted to investigate different coating thicknesses and determine the optimal thickness that maximizes the displacement improvement. This will contribute to improving the performance and expanding the application of silicon EVA in MEMS systems.
Reviewer 2 Report
This work investigates the displacement of silicon EVA with and without metal coating and compares metal coatings with different resistivities. The authors obtained meaningful results. This is an interesting work. Following revisions are suggested to improve the quality of this article:
1. Similar studies have been widely reported (such as doi: 10.1007/s00542-020-04985-5; 10.3390/mi12060622). How about the novelty of this paper?
2. The authors mention that metal coating improves the mechanical and thermal stability of the silicon EVA. This point is hard to get. Please give some clear explanations.
3. In the Introduction, some recent work should be cited to draw more readers’ attention. Such as doi: 10.1088/2631-8695/abb711; 10.3390/batteries9050279.
minor editing
Author Response
Thank you very much for your review and evaluation of the manuscript! Based on your comments and requests, we have partially revised the content of the original manuscript and revised the English language throughout. Your professional comments have greatly improved the quality of the manuscript. The following are our revision notes based on your comments.
Point 1: Similar studies have been widely reported (such as doi: 10.1007/s00542-020-04985-5; 10.3390/mi12060622). How about the novelty of this paper?
Response 1: I apologize for not providing sufficient description of the novelty in the writing process. In comparison to previous reports (such as doi: 10.1007/s00542-020-04985-5; 10.3390/mi12060622), this study establishes a composite model of metal coating and silicon EVA to drive the displacement equation. Multiple metal coatings are utilized for simulation purposes. By combining theoretical derivation and simulation, the study validates the conclusion that "The metal coating enhances the displacement of silicon EVA to different degrees, with a more pronounced effect observed for metal coatings with lower resistivity." The abstract, conclusions, and other relevant sections have been supplemented to emphasize the novelty of the research.
Point 2: The authors mention that metal coating improves the mechanical and thermal stability of the silicon EVA. This point is hard to get. Please give some clear explanations.
Response 2: I am sorry, the conclusion that "the metal coating improves the mechanical and thermal stability of the silicon EVA." is not very rigorous and has been changed to "the metal coating not only decreases the resistivity of silicon EVA but also improves the operational quality and efficiency of the actuator (due to lower driving voltage)."
Point 3: In the Introduction, some recent work should be cited to draw more readers’ attention. Such as doi: 10.1088/2631-8695/abb711; 10.3390/batteries9050279.
Response 3: According to the suggestions of the reviewing expert, recent works have been added to the introduction, and the introduction section has been modified,such as H. Hussein et al. [18] investigated the influence of actuator size and material properties on its performance and successfully validated the theoretical model through finite element simulation. Fan Q et al. [19] fabricated flexible double-layer ETAs by bonding graphite paper and PI film, enabling significant deformation of the "U"-shaped electrothermal actuator under low constraint conditions. Zhang D. et al. [20]proposed a V-shaped electrothermal MEMS actuator model that considers human error factors, using a cascaded ANSYS simulation model and fuzzy mathematical calculation model. Nouha Alcheikh et al. [21] studied the dynamics model of an electrothermal-driven MEMS V-shaped microbeam resonator through experimental, analytical, and numerical approaches.”
Reviewer 3 Report
This paper established a mechanical model of silicon EVA, the formula for its maximum displacement was derived, and the theoretical results were compared for both groups with and without metal coating group. Overall, this paper presents an interesting result, and the structure of this paper is fine. Here are some suggestions for further improving the quality of this paper:
1) At the beginning of the Introduction, it is suggested to show the microactuator to help the readers have a feeling of the research objective.
2) The dynamic model is applied in this paper for analysis. It is suggested to briefly introduce the significance of dynamic modeling techniques for industrial applications. Also, some discussions on the emerging areas of dynamic modeling for system responses analysis can be included, especially in terms of vibration-based updating of wear prediction for sure gears and digital twin-driven intelligent assessment of gear surface degradation.
3) 'Where' after equations should be 'where'.
4) The equations should be solved for generating simulated responses. It is suggested to specify the solver applied in this paper.
5) It is suggested to include some recommendations for future work at the end of the Conclusion.
Author Response
Thank you very much for your review and evaluation of the manuscript! Based on your comments and requests, we have partially revised the content of the original manuscript and revised the English language throughout. Your professional comments have greatly improved the quality of the manuscript. The following are our revision notes based on your comments.
Point 1: At the beginning of the Introduction, it is suggested to show the microactuator to help the readers have a feeling of the research objective.
Response 1: According to your suggestion, the different types of micromanipulators have been shown at the beginning of the introduction, and the specific modifications have been marked in the attachment.
Point 2: The dynamic model is applied in this paper for analysis. It is suggested to briefly introduce the significance of dynamic modeling techniques for industrial applications. Also, some discussions on the emerging areas of dynamic modeling for system responses analysis can be included, especially in terms of vibration-based updating of wear prediction for sure gears and digital twin-driven intelligent assessment of gear surface degradation.
Response 2: As per your suggestion this article adds some examples of electro-thermal actuator applications in micromechanics/equipment.”Consequently, electrothermal actuators find extensive applications in various micro-devices and systems, such as linear motors designed by Maloney et al. [6], nanomaterial testing devices developed by Espinosa et al. [7], micro grippers designed by Andersen et al. [8], and safety thermal devices designed by Hu et al. [9]. Additionally, with the advancement of the semiconductor industry, electrothermal actuators can be manufactured using mature integrated circuit fabrication processes, making them an integral part of MEMS devices”
Point 3: 'Where' after equations should be 'where'.
Response 3: I apologize for the unclear description of the "where" after the equation in this paper and will change it, which has been marked in the attached text due to the inconvenience of editing the equation in the notes.
Point 4: The equations should be solved for generating simulated responses. It is suggested to specify the solver applied in this paper.
Response 4: I am very sorry for not describing here, because the formula for the maximum displacement has been derived, and some parameters have been set above, so MATLAB has been used to solve the equation, the solution process is modified in this paper '' In summary, the displacement equations for the silicon electrothermal actuator were set up using MATLAB's scripting language, incorporating relevant parameters such as resistivity and thickness associated with the metal coating and silicon electro-thermal actuator. The equations were effectively solved using the MATLAB solver. The results were then compared and analyzed alongside the simulation data from COMSOL to gain a comprehensive understanding of the influence of various metal coatings on the actuator's displacement.''
Point 5: It is suggested to include some recommendations for future work at the end of the Conclusion.
Response 5: Add suggestions for future work at the end of the conclusion based on your suggestions ,such as " This study has investigated the influence of different metal coatings on the driving displacement of silicon EVA. Future work will involve experimental research to validate the theoretical models and simulation results. Additionally, further exploration will be conducted to investigate different coating thicknesses and determine the optimal thickness that maximizes the displacement improvement. This will contribute to improving the performance and expanding the application of silicon EVA in MEMS systems."
Round 2
Reviewer 2 Report
The manuscript has been significantly improved and is worthy of publication.
Good.
Reviewer 3 Report
This paper has been improved by addressing the comments from reviewers. I agree to accept it.
