Theoretical study and finite element simulation of ZnO/GaAs higher-order Lamb waves for microsensor application in liquid media

Abstract

Lamb waves with dominantly longitudinal displacement component have been reported for sensor application in liquid media. However, they are still limited for the fundamental symmetry mode with low plate thickness-to-wavelength (h/l) ratio, resulting in large wavelength and low resonance frequency. Here we show the finite element simulation study of higher-order Lamb waves on GaAs and ZnO/GaAs plates. In-plane polarised quasi-longitudinal higher-order Lamb waves are obtained at higher h/l ratio resulting in higher resonance frequencies. The solid-liquid contact simulation shows the confinement of acoustic energy inside the plate. The result demonstrates the suitability of ZnO/GaAs higher-order quasi-longitudinal modes for microsensor in liquid media.