02 Materials For MEMs and Microsystems

Materials for MEMs and Microsystems
Introduction
● Many Microsystems use microelectronics materials such as silicon, and gallium

arsenide (GaAs) for the sensing and actuating elements.
Reasons:
1) dimensionally stable;
2) well-established fabricating and packaging techniques.
● However, there are other materials used for MEMS and Microsystems products:
 Such as quartz and Pyrex, polymers and plastics, and ceramics. (not common in
microelectronics)
Substrate
In microelectronics, substrate is a flat macroscopic object on which microfabrication
processes take place.
In microsystems, a substrate serves an additional purpose: - Act as signal transducer besides
supporting other transducers that convert mechanical actions to electrical outputs or vice
versa.
In microsystems, there are two types of substrate materials:
1. Active substrate material.
2. Passive substrate material.
In MEMS, common substrate materials (silicon Si, germanium Ge, gallium arsenide GaAs)
all fall in the category of semiconductors.
Why?
They are at the borderline between conductors and insulators, so they can be made either a
conductor or an insulator as needed.
Can be converted to a conducting material by doping (p- or n-type).
Active Substrate Materials

Active substrate materials are primarily used for sensors and actuators in Microsystems
Typical materials: Si, GaAs, Ge, and quartz. (All except quartz are classified as semiconductors)
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Silicon as A substrate Material
The Ideal Substrate for MEMS
Single crystal silicon is the most widely used substrate material for MEMS and microsystems.
Silicon (Si) is the most abundant material on earth. It almost always exists in compounds with
other elements.
The popularity of silicon for such application is primarily for the following reasons:
(1) It is mechanically stable and it is feasible to be integrated into electronics on the same
substrate (b/c it is a semiconducting material).
(2) Electronics for signal transduction such as the p or n-type piezoresistive can be readily
integrated with the Si substrate-ideal for transistors.
(3) Silicon is almost an ideal structure material. It has about the same Young’s modulus as steel
( ∼ 2x10 5 MPa), but is as light as aluminum with a density of about 2.3 g/cm 3 .
(4) It has a melting point at 1400o C, which is about twice higher than that of aluminum. This
high melting point makes silicon dimensionally stable even at elevated temperature.
(5) Its thermal expansion coefficient is about 8 times smaller than that of steel, and is more than
10 times smaller than that of aluminum.
(6) Silicon shows virtually no mechanical hysteresis. It is thus an ideal candidate material for
sensors and actuators.
(7) Silicon wafers are extremely flat for coatings and additional thin film layers for either being
integral structural parts, or performing precise electromechanical functions.
(8) There is a greater flexibility in design and manufacture with silicon than with other substrate
materials. Treatments and fabrication processes for silicon substrates are well established and
documented.
Pure silicon wafers

Pure silicon boules
These boules are sliced into thin disks (wafers) using diamond saws.
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Standard sizes of wafers are:
100 mm (4”) diameter x 500 µm thick.
150 mm (6”) diameter x 750 µm thick.
200 mm (8”) diameter x 1 mm thick
300 mm (12”) diameter x 750 µm thick (tentative).
Single Silicon Crystal Structure
Single silicon crystals are basically of “face-cubic-center” (FCC) structure.
The crystal structure of a typical FCC crystal is shown below:
Note: Total number of atoms: 8 at corners and 6 at faces = 14 atoms

Single crystal silicon, however has 4 extra atoms in the interior.
The situation is like to merge two FCC crystals together as shown below:
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● Total no. of atoms in a single silicon crystal = 18.
● The unsymmetrical distribution of atoms within the crystal make pure
silicon anisotropic in its mechanical properties.
● In general, however, we treat silicon as an isotropic material
The 3 Principal Planes of a Silicon Crystal
The 3 Principal Planes of a Silicon Crystal-
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Characteristics of silicon by principal planes
1) The (100) planes contain least number of atoms → the weakest plane →
easiest to work with.
2) The (110) planes offers the cleanest surfaces in micro fabrications.
3) The (111) contains shortest bonds between atoms → strongest plane →
toughest to work with.
SILICON COMPOUNDS
There are 3 principal silicon compounds used in MEMS and microsystems: Silicon
dioxide (SiO2), Silicon carbide (SiC) and silicon nitride (Si3N4) – each Has distinct
characteristic and unique applications.
Silicon dioxide (SiO2)
● It is least expensive material to offer good thermal and electrical insulation.

● Also used a low-cost material for “masks” in micro fabrication processes
such as etching, deposition and diffusion.
● Used as sacrificial material in “surface micromachining”.
● Above all, it is very easy to produce:
Oxidation: by heating silicon in an oxidant (e.g., O2) with or without steam.
a. Dry oxidation:
- by dry heating of silicon: Si + O2 → SiO2
b. Wet oxidation in steam:
- oxide silicon in wet steam: Si + 2H2O → SiO2 + 2H2
Oxidation is effectively a diffusion process. Diffusivity of SiO2
at 900℃ in dry oxidation:
(a) 4×10-19 cm2 /s for arsenic (As)-doped silicon (n-type);
(b) 3×10-19 cm2 /s for boron (B)-doped silicon (p-type);
Note: Steam would accelerate the oxidation process.
Three principal uses of SiO2:

1) as a thermal and electric insulator
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2) as a mask in the etching of silicon substrates; (∵SiO2 has much stronger
resistance to most etchants than silicon)
3) as a sacrificial layer in the surface micromachining.
Silicon carbide (SiC)

It has very high melting point and resistance to chemical reactions make it ideal
candidate material for being masks in micro fabrication processes.
It has superior dimensional stability
Silicon nitride (Si3N4)
● Produced by chemical reaction:

3SiCl2H2 + 4NH3 → Si3N4 + 6HCL + 6H2
● Used as excellent barrier to diffusion to water and ions.
● It has ultra strong resistance to oxidation and many etchants make it a
superior material for masks in deep etching.
● Also used as high strength electric insulators.
Quartz
● Quartz is a compound of SiO2.
● Quartz crystal is made of up to 6 rings with 6 silicon atoms.
● The single-unit cell is in shape of tetrahedron:
● Quartz is ideal material for sensors because of its extreme dimensional

stability.
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● It is used as piezoelectric material in many devices.
● It is also excellent material for microfluics systems used in biomedical
applications.
● It offers excellent electric insulation in microsystems.
Piezoelectric crystals are solid ceramic compounds that produce piezoelectric

effects
● Natural piezoelectric crystals are: quartz, tourmaline and sodium potassium

tartrate.
POLYMERS
What is polymer? Polymers include: Plastics, adhesives, Plexiglass and Lucite.
Principal applications of polymers in MEMS:
● Currently in biomedical applications and adhesive bonding.

● New applications involve using polymers as substrates with electric
conductivity made possible by doping
Molecular structure of polymers:
● It is made up of long chains of organic (hydrocarbon) molecules.

● The molecules can be as long as a few hundred nm.
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Characteristics of polymers:
● Low melting point; Poor electric conductivity
● Thermoplastics and thermosets are common industrial products
● Thermoplastics are easier to form into shapes.
● Thermosets have higher mechanical strength even at temperature up to 350o C.
Polymers for MEMS and microsystems

(1) Photo-resist polymers are used to produce masks for creating desired
patterns on substrates by photolithography technique.
(2) The same photoresist polymers are used to produce the prime mold with
desirable geometry of the MEMS components in a LIGA process in micro
manufacturing
(3) Conductive polymers are used as “organic” substrates for MEMS and
microsystems.
(4) The ferroelectric polymers that behave like piezoelectric crystals can be
used as the source of actuation in micro devices such as in micro pumping.
(5) The thin Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films can be used to produce multilayer
microstructures.
(6) Polymers with unique characteristics are used as coating substance to
capillary tubes to facilitate effective electro-osmotic flow in microfluidics.
(7) Thin polymer films are used as electric insulators in micro devices, and as
dielectric substance in micro capacitors
(8) They are widely used for electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio
frequency interference (RFI) shielding in microsystems.
(9) Polymers are ideal materials for encapsulation of micro sensors and the
packaging of other microsystems.
Conductive Polymers
● Polymers are poor electric conducting materials by nature.
Some polymers can be made electrically conductive by the following 3
methods:
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● The process was first introduced by Langmuir in 1917 and was later
refined by Blodgett. That was why it is called Langmuir-Blodgett
process, or LB films.
● The process involves the spreading volatile solvent over the surface-
active substrate materials.
● The LB process can produce more than one single monolayer by
depositing films of various compositions onto a substrate to produce a
multilayer structure.
● LB films are good candidate materials for exhibiting ferro (iron)- , pyro
(heat)- and piezoelectric properties. LB films may also be produced with
controlled optical properties such as refractive index and anti reflections.
● They are thus ideal materials for micro sensors and optoelectronic
devices.
Following are a few examples of LB film applications in microsystems:
(1) Ferroelectric (magnetic) polymer thin films:
● The one in particular is the Poly-vinylidene fluoride (PVDF).
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Applications of this type of films include:
● Sound transducers in air and water,

● Tactile sensors,
● Biomedical applications such as tissue compatibility, cardio-pulmonary
sensors and implantable transducers and sensors for prosthetics and
rehabilitation devices.
(2) Coating materials with controllable optical properties:
● Broadband optical fibers that transmit light at various wavelengths.

(3) Microsensors:
Many electrically conducting polymeric materials are sensitive to the exposed
gas and other environmental conditions. So they are suitable materials for
micro sensors.
Its ability of detecting specific substances relies on the reversible and specific
absorption of species of interest on the surface of the polymer layer and the
subsequent measurable change of conductivity of the polymer.
PACKAGING MATERIALS
Unlike IC packaging in which plastic or ceramic are extensively used as
encapsulate materials for the delicate IC circuits, MEMS packaging involve a great
variety of materials-varying from plastic and polymers to stainless steel, as can be
seen in a specially packaged micro pressure sensor.
￭ MEMS and microsystems involve complex structural geometry and a variety

materials
￭ They are expected to perform multi-functions involving biological, chemical,
electrical, mechanical, and optical performances
● Packaging of microsystems involves: assembly, joining, interconnecting,

encapsulation of minute parts and components into a microsystem product
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● Packaging also includes performance and reliability testing of the finished
products
Distinction between the IC packaging and the microsystems packaging:
● For IC: to protect from the hostile operating environment.

● For microsystems: in addition to protection, it is required to be in contact
with the media that are sources of action.
Objectives of microsystems packaging:
• To provide support and protection to the delicate core elements, the associate
wire bonds and transduction units from mechanical or environmentally induced
damages (e.g. heat and humidity).
• Most of these elements requiring protection are required to interface with
working media, which may be environmentally hostile to these elements.
Materials for microsystem packaging:
- Include those for IC packaging:
(a) wires made of noble metals at silicon die level,
(b) metal layers for lead wires,
(c) solders for die/constraint base attachments, etc.
- Also include metal and plastics.
Microsystems Fabrication Processes

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Assignment II Due Date 04 /07/2022 at 09:00 AM
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Materials for MEMs and Microsystems

● Many Microsystems use microelectronics materials such as silicon, and gallium

Active Substrate Materials

Pure silicon wafers

Note: Total number of atoms: 8 at corners and 6 at faces = 14 atoms

The 3 Principal Planes of a Silicon Crystal

The 3 Principal Planes of a Silicon Crystal-

● It is least expensive material to offer good thermal and electrical insulation.

Three principal uses of SiO2:

Silicon carbide (SiC)

● Produced by chemical reaction:

● Quartz is ideal material for sensors because of its extreme dimensional

Piezoelectric crystals are solid ceramic compounds that produce piezoelectric

● Natural piezoelectric crystals are: quartz, tourmaline and sodium potassium

● Currently in biomedical applications and adhesive bonding.

● It is made up of long chains of organic (hydrocarbon) molecules.

Polymers for MEMS and microsystems

● Sound transducers in air and water,

● Broadband optical fibers that transmit light at various wavelengths.

￭ MEMS and microsystems involve complex structural geometry and a variety

● Packaging of microsystems involves: assembly, joining, interconnecting,

● For IC: to protect from the hostile operating environment.

Microsystems Fabrication Processes

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