J. Iannacci1,2
The WEAF Mnecosystem: a perspective of MEMS/NEMS technologies
as pillars of future 6G, tactile internet and super-IoT
Microsystem Technologies, Oct. 5, 2021.
DOI:10.1007/s00542-021-05230-3
1 Center for Sensors and Devices (DS), FBK Trento, Italy
2 InnerBlender, Bologna, Italy
2 InnerBlender, Bologna, Italy
Abstract: The future 6G and tactile internet (TI) paradigms pose challenges and demand for requirements that are far beyond what the 5G—today at its dawn—will ever achieve. The classical approaches in designing devices, systems and infrastructures will not be suitable to build the AI-driven (Artificial Intelligence) 6G network. This work envisages a critical part for MEMS/NEMS technologies in making 6G turn into reality. Such a leading role sits on a reformulation of the common concept of Hardware (HW) triggered by Micro/Nanotechnologies and Materials. To this end, the WEAF Mnecosystem, i.e. the Water, Earth, Air and Fire Micro/Nanotechnologies Ecosystem, is conceived, leveraging the analogy with the four classical elements in nature, and is explained in details in the following pages, along with the discussion of some reference examples. In a nutshell, Earth and Air are the classical concepts of the Hardware (HW) and Software (SW), respectively. Water is the novel formulation of the concept of HW, which, like water, is liquid in terms of functional characteristics and gains, at the same time, some features typical of the SW (i.e. Air). Fire, eventually, is the HW devoted to harvest, store and transfer energy, raising its level of abstraction to the concept of heat, which flows from warmer to cooler bodies.
Fig: Schematic of the self-recovery design solution [i]:
a.) Complete schematic of the RF-MEMS micro-relay;
b.) schematic with the MEMS membrane made invisible
in order to show the underlying micro-heater
Acknowledgements: The author wishes herewith to express his gratitude to Ms. Moira Osti for designing and realizing all the images included in this work. The author also wants to sincerely say thanks to Brando and Pietro, for accompanying the writing of parts of this work with their energy and unconditional serenity.
REF:
[i] Iannacci J, Repchankova A, Faes A, Tazzoli A, Meneghesso G, Niessner M (2010) Experimental investigation on the exploitation of an active mechanism to restore the operability of malfunctioning RF-MEMS switches. Proc Eng 5:734–737. DOI: /10.1016/j.proeng.2010.09.213
