Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T05:07:31.376Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Low-Cost Wafer-Level Vacuum Packaging for MEMS

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2011

Roland Gooch  and
Thomas Schimert
Get access

Abstract

Vacuum packaging of high-performance surface-micromachined uncooled microbolometer detectors and focal-plane arrays (FPAs) for infrared imaging and nonimaging applications, inertial MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) accelerometers and gyroscopes, and rf MEMS resonators is a key issue in the technology development path to low-cost, high-volume MEMS production. In this article, two approaches to vacuum packaging for MEMS will be discussed. The first is component-level vacuum packaging, a die-level approach that involves packaging individual die in a ceramic package using either a silicon or germanium lid. The second approach is wafer-level vacuum packaging, in which the vacuum-packaging process is carried out at the wafer level prior to dicing the wafer into individual die. We focus the discussion of MEMS vacuum packaging on surface-micromachined uncooled amorphous silicon infrared microbolometer detectors and FPAs for which both component-level and wafer-level vacuum packaging have found widespread application and system insertion. We first discuss the requirement for vacuum packaging of uncooled a-Si microbolometers and FPAs. Second, we discuss the details of the component-level and wafer-level vacuum-packaging approaches. Finally, we discuss the system insertion of wafer-level vacuum packaging into the Raytheon 2000AS uncooled infrared imaging camera product line that employs a wafer-level-packaged 160 × 120 pixel a-Si infrared FPA.

Keywords

infrared microbolometersmicroelectromechanical systems (MEMS)microelectronics packaging and integrationwafer-level vacuum packaging
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Bulletin , Volume 28 , Issue 1: Microelectronics Packaging and Integration , January 2003 , pp. 55 - 59
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2003

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Schimert, T., Gooch, R., McCardel, W., Terrill, R., Borrello, S., Whitney, J., Kroger, P., and Ahne, A., in Proc. 1996 Int. Specialty Conf. on Optical Sensing of Environmental and Process Monitoring (Air & Waste Management Association, Pittsburgh, 1997) p. 67.Google Scholar
2.Weathers, J., Ropson, S., and Syllaios, A.J., in Compliance, Safety, and Environmental Advances, ISA Technical Papers, Technology Update LV, Vol. 404 (The Instrumentation, Systems, and Automation Society, Research Triangle Park, NC, 2000) p. 23.Google Scholar
3.Weathers, J., Ropson, S., and Syllaios, A.J., InTech. 47 (12) (2000) p. 45.Google Scholar
4.Schimert, T., Cunningham, N., Francisco, G., Gooch, R., Gooden, J., McCardel, W., Neal, B., Ritchey, B., Rife, J., Syllaios, A.J., Tregilgas, J., Brady, J., Gilstrap, J., and Ropson, S., in Proc. SPIE, Vol. 4232 (SPIE—The International Society for Optical Engineering, Bellingham, WA, 2001) p. 187.Google Scholar
5.Schimert, T., Brady, J., Ropson, S., Gooch, R., Ritchey, B., McCardel, W., Syllaios, A.J., Tregilgas, J., Rachels, K., Weinstein, M., and Wynn, J., in Proc. SPIE, Vol. 4040 (SPIE—The International Society for Optical Engineering, Bellingham, WA, 2000) p. 23.Google Scholar
6.Schimert, T., Ratcliff, D., Gooch, R., Ritchey, B., McCardel, P., Brady, J., Rachels, K., Ropson, S., Wand, M., Weinstein, M., and Wynn, J., in Proc. SPIE, Vol. 3577 (SPIE—The International Society for Optical Engineering, Bellingham, WA, 1998) p. 96.Google Scholar
7.Gooch, R., Schimert, T., McCardel, W., Ritchey, B., Gilmour, D., and Koziarz, W., “Wafer Level Vacuum Packaging for MEMS,” presented at the American Vacuum Society 45th Int. Symp., Baltimore, November 1998; J. Vac. Sci. Technol. 17 (4) (1999) p. 2995.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8.Heck, J.M., Keller, C.G., Franke, A.E., Muller, L., King, T.J., and Howe, R.T., in Proc. 10th Int. Conf. on Solid-State Sensors and Actuators ( Transducers ′99) (Institution of Electrical Engineers, London, 1999) p. 328.Google Scholar
9.Seshia, A.A., Low, W.Z., Bhave, S.A., and Howe, R.T., “Micromechanical Pierce Oscillator for Resonator Sensor Applications,” presented at the Modeling and Simulation of Microsystems Workshop, San Juan, PR, April 2002.Google Scholar
10.Maharbiz, M., Howe, R.T., and Pister, K.S.J., in Proc. 10th Int. Conf. on Solid-State Sensors and Actuators ( Transducers ′99) (Institution of Electrical Engineers, London, 1999) p. 1478.Google Scholar
11.Maharbiz, M.M., Cohn, M.B., Howe, R.T., Horowitz, R., and Pisano, A.P., in Proc. 12th IEEE Int. Conf. on Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS ′99) (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Piscataway, NJ, 1999) p. 482.Google Scholar
12.Seshia, A.A., Howe, R.T., and Montague, S., “An Integrated Microelectromechanical Resonant Output Gyroscope,” presented at the 15th Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Micro Electro Mechanical Systems Conference, Las Vegas, January 20–24, 2002.Google Scholar
13.Seshia, A.A., Palaniapan, M., Roessig, T.A., Howe, R.T., Gooch, R.W., Schimert, T.R., and Montague, S., “A Vacuum Packaged Surface Micro-machined Resonant Accelerometer,” J. MEMS (December 2002).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14. Raytheon Commercial Infrared Home Page, http://www.raytheoninfrared.com (accessed December 2002).Google Scholar