ME 462: Introduction to MEMS

Spring 2022

Lecture 4
Nezih Topaloglu
Outline
 MEMS process design
 Mechanical properties of thin films
 Residual stress
 Stiction
 MEMS Modeling
 Mathematical Modeling
 Lumped Modeling Using Circuits
 One port elements
 Two-port elements
Mechanical properties of thin films
 Thin films in surface micromachining must satisfy a large set
of rigorous chemical, structural, mechanical, optical and
electrical requirements
 Critical Properties:
 Adhesion
 Residual stress and stress gradient
 Pinhole density
 Density
 Mechanical strength: Young’s Modulus, fracture strength,
fatigue
 They depend strongly on the details of the deposition
process and growth conditions
 Very different from bulk properties
 Need on-wafer measurements
 Stress & Strain
 Stress: Intensity of forces
distributed over the entire
cross section A (Unit: Pascal)
P

A
 Convention: L
l   Longitudin al strain
  0  Tensile stress L
D
  0  Compressive stress t   Transverse strain
D

P P
Tensile t
 Poisson’s ratio:  
l
P P
Compressive
Stress - strain curve
 From A to B, the material behaves
elastically. If unloading occurs at point
B, the same path is followed until the
origin (both strain and stress becomes
zero). Hooke’s Law applies:
  E (E : Young' s modulus)
 After B, the material deforms plastically.
If unloading occurs at point C, path CD
is followed. CD is parallel to AB. The
strain is not zero.
Thin film material properties

Source: Prof. N. Cheung, U.C. Berkeley, 2003

Residual stress
 Residual stresses in thin films can
develop during the film growth
(intrinsic stresses) or due to
unintended external factors (extrinsic
stresses)
 The intrinsic stresses can stem from
growth morphology, lattice misfit,
impurities, phase transformation, etc.
 The most common extrinsic stress is
thermal stress, which is due to the
mismatch in CTE (Coeff. Th. Exp.)
 Generally, the aim is to create a
stress-free thin film
Compressive & tensile stress
 Compressive stress
 The film tends to expand parallel to
the surface
 Causes buckling, blistering or
delamination (thick films)
 Tensile stress
 The film tends to contract
 May lead to cracking if forces high
enough to exceed fracture limit of
the film
 Residual stresses can be relaxed
by high-temperature anneals
Thermal stress
 Develop when high-temperature
deposition or annealing are
involved
 They are usually unavoidable
due to the mismatch between
coefficient of thermal expansion
(CTE)
 If a strain-free film at deposition
temperature is cooled down to
room temperature, on a
substrate with different CTE:
Stress gradients

Source: Prof. N. Cheung, U.C. Berkeley, 2003

Stress due to thermal expansion
mismatch
Stress due to thermal expansion
mismatch
Measuring compressive stress
 Clamped-clamped beams are used
to determine the amount of
compressive stress
 Due to compressive stress, the
clamped-clamped beams buckle,
and the buckling can be observed
by SEM or interferometry.
 Buckling occurs when the
compressive residual stress
exceeds
 2h2 E
f 
3L2
Vernier gauge
 Vernier gauges can determine tensile
or compressive stress under an
optical microscope with only one
device
 How does it work?
 The test beam (Lt) expands or
contracts causing the compliant slope
beam (Ls) to deflect into an “s” shape
 The indicator beam (Li), attached to
the slope beam at its point of
inflection rotates an angle θ
2 Ls
f 
3Li Lt C
where δ is the deflection and C is a
correction factor required by the
presence of the indicator beam
Spiral cantilevers
 Spiral cantilevers are
used for the
characterization of
stress gradients
 The stress gradient can
be determined by
measuring
 The amount of lateral
contraction,
 The change in height; or
 The amount of rotation
Fan et al, 1990
Controlling intrinsic stress
 Stiction
 Stiction: Static friction, or perhaps coming
from the name “stick”
 Two objects pressing against each other (but
not sliding) will require some threshold of
force in order to overcome static cohesion
 More effective in micrometer range, as the
Van Der Waals and hydrogen bonding forces
become significant
 Release stiction
 While drying after release etch, capillary forces
developed during evaporation pull surfaces
into contact
 Van der Waals forces hold the beam in contact
with substrate causing permanent stiction
 In-use stiction
 During device use, surfaces may come into
contact and adhere due to
 Capillary condensation
 Electrostatic forces
 Strong molecular forces
 Avoiding Stiction
 Use dry release instead of wet etch release
 Mechanical approach: Reduce droplet area with standoff bumps (dimples)

dimple

 Chemical approach: Hydrophobic Self-Assembled Monolayer

(SAM)
 A method to modify the chemistry of the solid-liquid interface
 Changes from the hydrophillic case to hydrophobic case
 CO2 Supercritical drying:
 Avoids liquid-meniscus
 Used for etching silicon dioxide
CO2 Supercritical Drying
 Avoids liquid-vapor
meniscus
 The transformation
from liquid to
supercritical fluid
and then to vapor
involves virtually
zero surface tension
Outline: MEMS Modeling
 MEMS Modeling
 Mathematical Modeling
 Lumped Modeling Using Circuits
 One port elements
 Two-port elements
Classifying Mathematical Models
 Linear vs. Nonlinear
 Linear model: All operators present linearity, i.e. satisfy the additivity (f(x+y) =
f(x) + f(y)) and homogeneity (f(α(x)) = αf(x)) properties
 Nonlinear model: Principle of superposition does not work
 Deterministic vs. probabilistic (stochastic)
 Deterministic model: Set of variable states is uniquely determined by parameters
and by sets of previous states of these variables. Deterministic models perform
the same way for a given set of initial conditions
 Stochastic model: Randomness is present, and variable states are described by
probability distributions
 Static vs. dynamic
 Static model: Does not account for the element of time
 Dynamic model: Accounts for time and are typically represented with ODE’s
 Lumped parameters vs. distributed parameters
 Lumped parameters: If the model is homogeneous (consistent state throughout
the entire system) the parameters are lumped
 Distributed parameters: If the model is heterogeneous
How do we do MEMS?
Device/system design:
Mechanics, electronics,
electrostatics, fluidics..

Process design: Chemistry

System analysis: and physics of fabrication
Modeling, simulation

Fabrication: Clean room

Testing: probe station,

SEM, TEM, etc
MEMS Modeling
 Lumped modeling using circuits
 Simplified device representation by using equivalent electric
circuits
 Governed by Kirchhoff’s laws

KCL (Kirchoff’s current law) KVL (Kirchoff’s voltage law)

i2  i3  i1  i4 V1  V2  V3  V4  0
Source: Wikipedia
 Lumped Element
 Lumped Element: A discrete object that can
exchange energy with other discrete AB
objects
 The net power flow from to elements (from A BA B
A to B) can be written as a product of two
real numbers, effort and flow.

net  AB  BA  et  f t 

e(t): Effort
f(t): Flow
 The time integration of flow gives the generalized displacement
 The time integration of effort gives the generalized momentum
 Effort & flow examples
Energy
Effort Flow Momentum Displacement
Domain
Mechanical
Force (F) Velocity (v) Momentum (p) Position (x)
translation
Fixed-axis Angular Angular
Torque (τ) Angle (θ)
rotation velocity (ω) momentum (J)

Electric circuits Voltage (V) Current (I) ... Charge (Q)

Magnetic
MMF Flux rate ... Flux (φ)
circuits
Incompressible Volumetric Pressure
Pressure Volume
fluid flow flow momentum

Temperature Entropy flow

Thermal (T) rate
... Entropy (S)

Source: Microsystems Design, S. Senturia, 2001 - page 105

 One port elements

 Port: Pair of terminals on a circuit

element carrying the same
current/through variable/flow
through the lumped element

Effort (e): Voltage (across variable)

Electrical Circuits
Flow (f): Current (through variable)
Effort (e): Force (across variable)
Mechanical elements
Flow (f): Velocity (through variable)
Effort (e): Pressure (across variable)
Fluids
Flow (f): Volume flow rate (through variable)
One port source elements

Sources supply power to other elements (i.e. they are active

elements)
 Generalized resistor & capacitor
 A resistor absorbs power  A capacitor stores potential energy

System Dynamics, D. Karnopp et al.

 Generalized inertance
 A generalized inductor stores kinetic energy. It can also be
defined in terms of flow and momentum

dI dv
V L F m
dt dt
  LI p  mv
A spring-mass dashpot system

Elements sharing common flow and displacement: series connection

Elements sharing common effort: parallel connection
A spring-mass dashpot system
Apply KVL:  F  ek  em  eb  0

 Z C s   1 sC
Capacitor impedance: I  C
dV
dt
 Z L s   sL
dI
Inductor impedance: V  L
dt
Resistance: V  IR  Z R s   R

Lm es   Z s  f s 
Rb  k
Mappings: 1Ck
F s    sm  b   x s 
 s
V F x s  s
  2
I v F s  s m  sb  k

Can be solved also with state-variables

Transformers & Gyrators
 Both of them are two port elements
 They neither store nor dissipate energy: e1 f1  e2 f 2  0

f1 f2
+ +

e1 Two-port e2
element
- -

 e2  n 0   e1 
Transformer:      f 
 2 
f 0  1 n  1 n: Scale factor
 e2   0 n  e1 
Gyrator: 
 f   1 n 0   f 
 2   1
Transformers & Gyrators
 Transformers:  Gyrators: