Parametric amplification in MoS2 drum resonator

Nanoscale. 2017 Nov 30;9(46):18299-18304. doi: 10.1039/c7nr05721k.

Abstract

Parametric amplification is widely used in diverse areas from optics to electronic circuits to enhance low level signals by varying relevant system parameters. Parametric amplification has also been performed in several micro-nano resonators including nano-electromechanical system (NEMS) resonators based on a two-dimensional (2D) material. Here, we report the enhancement of mechanical response in a MoS2 drum resonator using degenerate parametric amplification. We use parametric pumping to modulate the spring constant of the MoS2 resonator and achieve a 10 dB amplitude gain. We also demonstrate quality factor enhancement in the resonator with parametric amplification. We investigate the effect of cubic nonlinearity on parametric amplification and show that it limits the gain of the mechanical resonator. Amplifying ultra-small displacements at room temperature and understanding the limitations of the amplification in these devices is key for using these devices for practical applications.