Technology Available for Licensing

Case 13279

Micro and Nano Scale Shape Memory Material for Mechanical Damping

Keywords:

MEMS, NEMS, Shape Memory Alloys, Mechanical Damping

Applications:

Micro-scale and nano-scale electromechanical systems

Problem:

Suppression of vibration and impact shock to maintain integrity of system operation

Technology:

This invention provides a mechanical structure with a crystalline superelastic alloy, characterized by a small grain size and a martensitic phase transformation resulting from a mechanical stress input. The structure enables ultra-high-damping performance with response times in the order of just a few milliseconds. The basic mechanism by which the alloys can dissipate mechanical energy efficiently is through their reversible thermoelastic transformation between the austenite phase and the martensite phase. As a realization of the technology, a mechanical damping system can be designed as the mechanical connection between a mechanical system and a mechanical support.

Advantages:

Efficient and reliable mechanical damping suitable for new generations of micro and nano electromechanical systems

Inventors:

• Professor Christopher A. Schuh (Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MIT)
• Dr. Jose Maria San Juan (Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MIT)
• Dr. Ying Chen (Department of Materials Science and Engineering, MIT)

Intellectual Property:

U.S. Patent Number 8,282,746, issued on October 9, 2012

Publications:

N/A

Please contact: Christopher R. Noble MIT Technology Licensing Officer 1 Cambridge Center, Kendall Square, NE18-501 Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142-1601

Email: crn@mit.edu Tel: 617-253-6966 Fax: 617–258-6790 Website: http://tlo.mit.edu