Frequency jump and mode transition of an electrostatic self-excited resonator under DC voltage

We report a novel electrostatic self-excited resonator that achieves frequency jump and mode transition under DC voltage powering and control. By gradually increasing the DC voltage by 10%, the frequency output can suddenly jump to 5 times of its original value with the oscillation mode transitioning from the first-order to the second-order. Further, by implementing an artificial insect wing on the resonator, we also present a dual-mode flapping-wing actuator with dramatic increases in lift force and power output after a frequency jump. The frequency jump and mode transition due to small voltage variations have great potential in the field of multi-mode propulsion devices for high-mobility micro-robots. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.