This thesis investigates the vibrations of outer-clamped rotating disk which simulates the wafer cutting machine. Among others, the effets of the centrifugal force due to rotation and the initial tension on the vibration characteristics of the disk are considered through simulation studies. To obtain the modal parameters of the disk, Galerkin's method is adopted.
Simulation results show that the centrifugal force tends to decrease the buckling speed of the disk whereas the initial tension significantly increases the buckling and flutter speeds. Laboratory experiments are also performed with a disk without initial tension to verify the simulation results. Experimental results suggest that the extension of the outer clamping fixture due to rotation could significantly alter the distribution of the natural frequencies of the ideal disk particularly when the initial tension is small.
