Nanoscale elastic imaging of micro-electro-mechanical system based micromirrors

Bruce Altemus; Gajendra Shekhawat; Bai Xu; Robert E. Geer; James Castracane

doi:10.1117/12.442995

2 October 2001 Nanoscale elastic imaging of micro-electro-mechanical system based micromirrors

Bruce Altemus, Gajendra Shekhawat, Bai Xu, Robert E. Geer, James Castracane

Proceedings Volume 4558, Reliability, Testing, and Characterization of MEMS/MOEMS; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.442995
Event: Micromachining and Microfabrication, 2001, San Francisco, CA, United States

Abstract

We present measurements of the nanoscale elastic properties of hinge structures supporting micro-mirror arrays using a new characterization technique called Ultrasonic Force Microscopy (UFM). This technique is based on Atomic Force Microscopy with ultrasonic excitation which provides a means of testing the elastic response at MHz frequencies. The simultaneous recording of topography with elastic imaging allows the elimination of any artifacts. In this report, we demonstrate that UFM can achieve nano-scale elastic resolution to reveal mechanical stress induced changes as well as process induced material fatigue in the micro-mirror devices. The main aim of this study is polysilicon-based hinge structures that support the micro-mirror because they show the highest stress during mirror switching. Our results indicate that no significant structural and mechanical change of the polysilicon-based hinge support structure occurs even after more than 1,000,000,000 switching cycles. This method offers a non-destructive way to perform reliability characterization on MEMS devices. This technique developed will offer new opportunities for the evaluation of structural and mechanical integrity of MEMS devices.

Citation Download Citation

Bruce Altemus, Gajendra Shekhawat, Bai Xu, Robert E. Geer, and James Castracane "Nanoscale elastic imaging of micro-electro-mechanical system based micromirrors", Proc. SPIE 4558, Reliability, Testing, and Characterization of MEMS/MOEMS, (2 October 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.442995

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