NEXLINE®: High-Force Ceramic Linear Drive for Long-Range Nanopositioning

N-216 NEXLINE® high-load linear motors are ultra-precision nanopositioning actuators with travel ranges to 20 mm and push / pull forces to 600 N (130 lb). The operating principle is based on coordinated motion of a number of highly preloaded linear and shear piezo elements acting on a runner and does not involve rotation/linear conversion. The working principle is non-magnetic, vacuum & clean room compatible.

	N-216 NEXLINE® High-Load Actuator	..

Open & Closed Loop Operation
N-216 comes in two versions for open- or closed-loop operation, as well as in two different load configurations. Closed-loop versions are equipped with a linear encoder for direct position measurement of the moving runner. The encoder features 5 nm resolution over the full travel range. In open-loop operation a positioning resolution to 30 picometers can be realized by use of the (high-dynamics) analog operation mode.

Extreme Reliability, Virtually Unlimited Lifetime
NEXLINE® drives have many high-end applications from ultra-precision manufacturing and semiconductor test equipment to astronomy and high energy physics applications. They excel when the requirements for high forces, precision, lifetime and stability are paramount. The extreme reliability makes them ideal for applications in difficult-to-access internals of instruments, where nanometer-realm adjustment and / or vibration cancellation are required. To promote long lifetime, the PiezoWalk® controller can reduce the operating voltage on all the piezo elements to zero at any position without affecting the full holding force (up to 800 N, 177 lbs)..

PiezoWalk® Working Principle Allows Different Operation Modes
NEXLINE® drives overcome the limitations of conventional nanopositioning systems in their combination of long travel ranges and high resolution and stiffness. The piezo ceramic clamping and shear elements act directly on a moving runner coupled to the load. For maximum velocity, and long distance movements, the runner can be driven in full step mode. Extremely uniform motion and constant velocity is achieved with the nanostepping mode. In addition to combining long travel ranges with piezo-class precision, NEXLINE® PiezoWalk® drives also offer a high-dynamics analog operation mode (100's of Hz) over smaller distances (to 6 µm).

High-Dynamics Analog Mode for Application Flexibility
In the highly responsive analog operation mode (distance less than one full step), the position resolution is only limited by the stability of the control signal (typically 10s of picometers are feasible). This mode can be used for ultra-precise adjustments, scanning, dithering and also for active vibration control. Customized NEXLINE® drives for different loads, travel ranges and dynamic requirements are feasible, because PI fully controls the manufacturing process of the "piezo engines" internal to the NEXLINE® motors.

Choice of Controllers
NEXLINE® operation is supported by two motion controller models providing different features. The (lower-cost) E-755 controller offers full functionality for nanometer precise positioning. The E-712 supplies more sophisticated linearization algorithms resulting in very smooth motion with highly constant velocity and offers greater flexibility by nature of its modular design.

Patented Technology
The products described in this document are in part protected by the following patents:
German Patent No. 10148267
US Patent No. 6,800,984.

For further information contact:

Physik Instrumente (PI) GmbH & Co.KG
Auf der Römerstr. 1
D-76228 Karlsruhe
Tel. +49 721 4846-0
Fax. +49 721 4846-100
info@pi.ws · www.pi.ws