Mechanical Mode Imaging of a High-Q Hybrid hBN/Si3N4 Resonator

Nano Lett. 2023 Mar 8;23(5):2016-2022. doi: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c00233. Epub 2023 Feb 27.

Abstract

We image and characterize the mechanical modes of a 2D drum resonator made of hBN suspended over a high-stress Si3N4 membrane. Our measurements demonstrate hybridization between various modes of the hBN resonator and those of the Si3N4 membrane. The measured resonance frequencies and spatial profiles of the modes are consistent with finite-element simulations based on idealized geometry. Spectra of the thermal motion reveal that, depending on the degree of hybridization with modes of the heavier and higher-quality-factor Si3N4 membrane, the quality factors and the motional mass of the hBN drum modes can be shifted by orders of magnitude. This effect could be exploited to engineer hybrid drum/membrane modes that combine the low motional mass of 2D materials with the high quality factor of Si3N4 membranes for optomechanical or sensing applications.

Keywords: 2D materials; hexagonal boron nitride; mode imaging; nanomechanical resonators.