Surface acoustic wave coupling between micromechanical resonators

Abstract: The coupling of micro- or nanomechanical resonators via a shared substrate is intensively exploited to built systems for fundamental studies and practical applications. So far, the focus has been on devices operating in the kHz regime with a spring-like coupling. At resonance frequencies above several 10 MHz, wave propagation in the solid substrate becomes relevant. The resonators act as sources for surface acoustic waves (SAWs) and it is unknown how this effects the coupling between them. Here, we present a model for MHz frequency resonators interacting by SAWs and derive the eigenfrequencies and quality factors of a pair of resonators for the symmetric and antisymmetric mode. Our results are in agreement with finite element method (FEM) simulations and show that in contrast to the well-known strain-induced spring-like coupling, the coupling via SAWs is not only dispersive but also dissipative. This can be exploited to realize high quality phonon cavities, an alternative to acoustic radiation shielding by, e.g. phononic crystals.