Mechanical Design and Optimization of a Suspension of Multi-function Sensing Probes

Multi-function probing systems are of significant importance for characterization of surface properties and in situ surface topography at the micro and nanometer level. This paper presents the mechanical design and parameter optimization of the flexure-based suspension system for multi-function sensing probes. By evaluating several topological structures, the proposed threefold-symmetric beam shows the best results and is therefore preferred. Finite Element Analysis is adopted to perform the parameter optimization due to its high accuracy in modeling complex compliant systems. The FEM analysis shows that the proposed threefold-symmetric beam assembly has a working range in excess of 20 mu m in Z axis, with a linear stiffness of 750 N/m in Z axis and a natural frequency of 426 Hz in Z axis. The proposed threefold-symmetric beam has wide potentials in multi-function sensing probing applications.