Patent ID: 6895829

Claim:
A method for sensing a mass with a mass sensor having at least one piezoelectric element, in which a connection plate is joined to a diaphragm at respective sides thereof, at least one sensing plate is joined to said connection plate at respective sides thereof in a direction perpendicular to the joining direction of said diaphragm and said connection plate, and wherein at least a portion of at least one side of said connection plate and said sensing plate are joined to a side of a sensor substrate; wherein said piezoelectric element measures a resonant frequency based on at least one of: (a) a θ-mode swing oscillation of said diaphragm, wherein said diaphragm performs a pendular oscillation centered on an axis perpendicularly passing through a center of a fixed plane defined by the joining surface of said connection plate and said sensor substrate in a direction perpendicular to a side of said diaphragm and also perpendicular to said perpendicular axis; or (b) a φ-mode swing oscillation of said diaphragm, wherein said diaphragm performs a pendular oscillation centered on said perpendicular axis, swinging in a direction perpendicular to said side of said diaphragm and also perpendicular to said perpendicular axis accompanied by a swing in a direction parallel to said side of said diaphragm.