Patent ID: 7126249

Claim:
An electrostatic actuator comprising: a movable electrode disposed for relative displacement along a basement plane and defining first and second opposed surfaces opposed to each other; a first stable electrode column standing on a base substrate; a second stable electrode column standing on the base substrate at a location spaced from the first stable electrode column; a first stable electrode wall connected to the first stable electrode column and extending between the first and second stable electrode columns, said first stable electrode wall being opposed to the first opposed surface of the movable electrode; a second stable electrode wall connected to the second stable electrode column and extending between the first and second stable electrode columns, said second stable electrode wall being opposed to the second opposed surface of the movable electrode; and an insulating solid piece connecting at least an end of the first stable electrode wall near the second stable electrode column to the second stable electrode column and an end of the second stable electrode wall near the first stable electrode column to the first stable electrode column, wherein the moveable electrode has a thickness W, each of the first and second stable electrode walls has a thickness W, the first and second stable electrode columns are located in a space between the first and second datum planes, the first datum plane is defined to include an outward surface of the first stable electrode wall, the second datum plane is defined to include an outward surface of the second stable electrode wall and a distance between the first and second datum planes is equal to or larger than three times the thickness W of the movable electrode, and wherein the insulating solid piece connects the first and second stable electrode walls.