Page 30 - An Introduction to Microelectromechanical Systems Engineering

Journals, Conferences, and Web Sites 9

Percent
−100

VCRs
−80

−60

−40
Cable TVs PCs
−20
Cell phones
1960 1970 1980 1990 ‘96
Figure 1.2 The percentage of household penetration of new electronic products. It takes 5 to 15
years before new technologies reach wide acceptance [12].

Today, MEMS and associated product concepts generate plenty of excitement
but not without skepticism. Companies exploring for the first time the incorpora-
tion of MEMS solutions in their systems do so with trepidation until an internal
“MEMS technology champion” emerges to educate the corporation and raise the
confidence level. With many micromachined silicon sensors embedded in every car
and in numerous critical medical instruments, and with additional MEMS products
finding their way into our daily life, the height of this hidden psychological barrier
appears to be declining.

Journals, Conferences, and Web Sites

The list of journals and conferences with a focus on micromachining and MEMS
continues to grow every year. There is also a growing list of online Web sites, most
®
notably MEMSnet , an information clearinghouse hosted by the Corporation for
National Research Initiatives of Reston, Virginia, and Nexus Association of Greno-
ble, France, a nonprofit organization with funding from the European Commission.
The sites provide convenient links and maintain relevant information directories
(see Table 1.4).

List of Journals and Magazines
Several journals and trade magazines published in the United States and Europe
cover research and advances in the field. Some examples are:

• Sensors and Actuators (A,B&C): a peer-reviewed scientific journal pub-
lished by Elsevier Science of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
• Journal of Micromechanical Systems (JMEMS): a peer-reviewed scientific
journal published by the IEEE of Piscataway, New Jersey, in collaboration
with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) of New York,
New York.