On the mechanical behaviour of a crystalline undulator

A crystalline undulator is a newly proposed compact device to generate coherent electro-magnetic waves. The crystalline undulator is a micro-electro-mechanical system that relies on silicon micro-fabrication. In the present work, the mechanical behaviour of a crystalline undulator with sub-millimetric period obtained by patterning the surfaces of a silicon lamina with alternate strips has been investigated. The anisotropy of the silicon substrate and the geometrically nonlinear behaviour of the device have been discussed. Sensitivity study has been performed for defining the optimal thickness and width of the strips. Finally, an analytical model is proposed to evaluate the displacements and local effects such as interfacial shear stress concentrations. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.