Amplification by 1/f noise with stochastic resonance in silicon-based nanomechanical resonators.

We report signal amplification by 1/f noise with stochastic resonance in a nanomechanical two-state system of a nonlinear silicon resonator. The addition of 1/f noise to a sub-threshold modulation signal enhances the likelihood of an electrostatically driven resonator switching between its two states in the hysteretic region. Considering the prevalence of 1/f noise in integrated circuits, signal enhancement demonstrated here, using a fully on-chip electronic actuation/detection scheme, suggests potentially beneficial use of the otherwise detrimental noise.