AVS 49th International Symposium
    Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) Thursday Sessions
       Session MM-ThA

Invited Paper MM-ThA1
Addressing MEMS Reliability Through Innovative Fabrication, Integration, and Packaging Techniques

Thursday, November 7, 2002, 2:00 pm, Room C-210

Session: Fabrication, Integration, and Packaging Techniques for MEMS
Presenter: V.M. Bright, University of Colorado, Boulder
Correspondent: Click to Email
MEMS research at the University of Colorado in Boulder (UCB) has been focused on MEMS reliability through innovative design, materials, and fabrication. The UCB has applied techniques from other fields in a novel way to solve reliability issues in MEMS. This approach has improved the reliability of more traditional silicon-based MEMS. It also has resulted in a number of innovative new MEMS designs and applications. As the silicon-based MEMS manufacturing techniques mature and products transition from the R&D phase to production, the reliability aspects of MEMS design, fabrication, and packaging become more of a reality. It is known that MEMS reliability problems are related to nano-scale interface phenomena. One approach to solve MEMS reliability challenges is through novel materials and/or fabrication methods. Another approach is to improve MEMS reliability through proper design, which takes into account interface phenomena such as adhesion or charging. The barriers to MEMS reliability include: thin film structure susceptibility to adhesion due to large contact surface area and/or dielectric charging; limited life-time of microstructure due to friction and wear at micro-scale; multilayered structure change in curvature during thermomechanical loading or fabrication/packaging processes that require temperature cycling; multilayered structure stress relaxation over time, which may result in changing device functionality. In order to build reliable devices, advanced design knowledge must emphasize interactions among thermal, mechanical, chemical, and atomic effects bridging the necessary nano- and micro-scales. The fabrication must focus on nano-scale materials synthesis, characterization, material processing and packaging technologies that are critical to assure device reliability. The technologies that this talk is focused on include: atomic layer deposition of coatings, self-assembly of MEMS using surface tension forces, flip-chip MEMS assembly and packaging.