Experimental evidence for mode shape influence on acceleration-induced frequency shifts in quartz resonators

Experimental results are presented to support the hypothesis that the shape and location of the active region of vibration in a thickness shear mode quartz resonator are the dominant factors in determining the acceleration sensitivity of the resonator. The shape and location of the mode in a real world resonator vary sufficiently from unit to unit (due to material and processing variations) that all other considerations are overwhelmed. It is shown experimentally that the mode shape and/or location can be trimmed with energy trapping by judicious addition or subtraction of mass to produce resonators with improved acceleration sensitivity.