CHAPTER3

Introduction to Microsystems
 Micro-Mechatronic systems
 Micro manufacturing techniques
 Micro fluidics
 Micro sensors & actuators

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 1

 Introduction

Micro-Mechatronic Systems
Start

 Micro-Mechatronics – Is synergetic integration of micro-electro-mechanical systems

,microelectronic technologies and precision mechatronics.
 Micromechantronics involve the design and manufacture of device components in the
micro or/and nanometer scale that synergistically integrate mechanical and electronic
functions and the information technology.
 Micro-Mechatronic devices would be in the range of few microns to 1cm.

Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 2

 Introduction

Layout of Micro-Mechatronic Systems

Start

Micro-electronic control
Micro-Actuators Micro-mechanism
systems

Micro-sensors

Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 3

 Introduction

Macro-scaled Mechatronics vs Micro mechatronics

Start

Macro-scaled Mechatronic systems Micro-mechatronic systems

Fabrication process for macro-scaled
mechatronic products involves: Physical-chemical processes are used to
• conventional machine tools (lathe ,milling fabricate micomechatronic systems
) and other macro-level manufacturing
techniques
Macro level products Small sized products (ranging from few
microns to few millimeters )
Actuation forces Actuation Forces
Electromagnetic forces are used for  Electrostatic forces
actuation.  Thermal forces
These forces can not be scaled down to  Piezo-electric forces are ideal actuation
micro Deployment
level and not&ideal
Life for
cycle optimization
micro - for micro mechatronic systems.
mechatronics
Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 4
 Design & packaging of MMP

Mechanical design & packaging of Micro mechatronic products

Start

Some of the unique design considerations for micro -mechatronic products are:
1. Geometry of device components:
2. Materials used
3. Design methodologies
4. Assembly & packaging

Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 5

 Design & packaging of MMP

Unique design considerations for Micro mechatronic product

Start

Geometry of device components for Micro mechatronic products:

There are relatively fewer distinct geometry used in the components in micro devices and
micro mechatronic systems than the conventional mechatronics systems. Most of these
micro-scaled components are made in the following configurations:
1. Beams for micro relays; micro gripping arms; beam springs in micro
accelerometers.
2. Plates for thin diaphragms in pressure sensors; plate-springs in micro accelerometers;
Deployment
electrodes & Life
for signal cycle optimization
transducers and for electrostatic force generations, etc.

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 6

 Design & packaging of MMP

Unique design considerations for Micro mechatronic products

Start

Geometry of device components for Micro mechatronic products:

3. Tubes for containing and directing minute fluid flows in micro fluidic network
systems with electro-kinetic pumping, e.g. in electro-osmosis and electrophoresis.
4. Channels with open or closed tops of square, rectangular, trapezoidal cross-sections in
microfluidic networks.
Although the geometry of micro-mechatronics device components appear to be relatively
simple, many of these beams, plates and capillary tubes are made of multi-layer of
dissimilar materials.
Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 7

 Design & packaging of MMP

Unique design considerations for Micro mechatronic product

Start

Materials used :
• Silicon and silicon compounds that are common materials for ICs are widely used for
the core elements in micro mechatronic systems.
• Electrically conductive polymers are used for certain components in micro
mechatronic products such as microfluidics in biomedical applications.

Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 8

 Design & packaging of MMP

Unique design considerations for Micro mechatronic product

Start

Design methodologies :
• Most mechanical engineering design principles derived from continuum theories
remain valid for engineering analyses of micro mechatronics device components
greater than 1 µm.
• For those components that are in sub-micrometer scale, almost all mechanical and
thermo-physical properties of the materials become size-dependent.
• Consequently, many of the conventional constitutive formulations such as the generalized
Hooke’s law and the heat conduction equation for solids require significant modifications to
Deployment & Life cycle optimization
accommodate size-dependent material properties.
Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 9
 Design & packaging of MMP

Unique design considerations for Micro mechatronic product

Start

Assembly & packaging :

• Packaging cost is a major portion of the overall cost of any micro mechatronic product.
• The objective of micro mechatronics packaging is to provide support and protection to
the delicate core elements such as the sensing element or actuating mechanisms, the
associate wire bonds and transduction units from mechanical and environmentally
induced damages.
• Most of these core elements are required to interface with working medium, which may be
environmentally hostile (unfriendly ) to the material of these core elements. Interface is thus a
Deployment & Life cycle optimization
major problem in micro mechatronic systems packaging.
Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 10
 Micro manufacturing techniques

Micro manufacturing techniques

Start

1. Bulk micro manufacturing

2. Surface micro-machining

3. The LIGA processes

Deployment & Life cycle optimization

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 11

 Micro manufacturing techniques

Bulk micro manufacturing

Start

 Bulk micro manufacturing technique involves creating 3-D components by

removing materials from thick substrates (silicon or other materials) using
primarily etching method.
 Substrates that can be etched in bulk micro manufacturing include:
- Silicon
- SiC
-GaAs
-special polymers

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 12

 Micro manufacturing techniques

Bulk micro manufacturing

Start

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 13

 Micro manufacturing techniques

Surface Micro machining

Start

 Etching process creates 3-D microstructures by removing material from

substrates.
 Removed substrate materials are wasted.
 Surface micromachining creates 3-D microstructures by adding material to the
substrate.
 Added materials may not be same as the substrate material – flexibility.
 There is little waste of substrate materials.
 Deposition processes are commonly used methods – expensive.

Tayachew Fikire – AASTU Design of Mechatronic Systems – Chapter 3 14

 Surface Micromachining : Description
Illustration of micromachining process – creation of a polysilicon cantilever beam on silicon
substrate base:
Start PSG
● Deposit a sacrificial layer of PSG (Phosphosilicate glass).
Sacrificial
A Silicon constraint base Layer

Mask 1
for etching
B ● Cover the PSG layer with Mask 1 (made of Si3N4) for subsequent
etching away the PSG for beam’s support area as shown in Step
C.

Mask 2
● Produce a Mask 2 (Si3N4) with opening of the size of the beam length
for deposition and width. Cover this Mask on top of the PSG layer.
D

● Deposit polysilicon over the masked region thickness of the beam.

E

● Remove the sacrificial PSG by etching (see blow) and

F
SiliconFikire
Tayachew – AASTU
constraint base creates the free-standing cantilever beam.
After etching of sacrificial layer
 The LIGA process

● The term LIGA is an acronym for German term in “Lithography

(Lithographie), electroforming (Galvanoformung), and
Start
molding (Abformung)”.

● The technique was first developed at the Karlsruhe Nuclear Research Center in
Karlsruhe, Germany.

● LIGA process is radically different from silicon-based micro manufacturing.

● The major difference is that LIGA can produce microstructures that have high aspect
ratio.

● There is no restriction on using silicon or silicon compounds as substrate. Nickel is a

common material for LIGA products.

● It is easier to be produced in large volumes.

● Major disadvantage of LIGA process is the requirement of special facility

- Synchrotron radiation (X-ray) source, a very expensive facility.
 The LIGA process

Major stepsStart
in LIGA process

Deep x-ray Photoresist with Electroplating of

lithography desired patterns metal on patterns
(Provided by Synchrotron (Using a mask made of
radiation facility) Quartz with gold plating)

Metal Plastic products by

or Metal molds injection molding
product
(Usually with nickel linings)
 The LIGA process
Fabrication of a square tube using LIGA
Gold plated (For blocking x-ray)
Start region

Mask (Si3N4) (Transparent to x-ray)

X-ray 1 - 1.5 m tk
Thick film
Photoresist
The desired PMMA
product: a tube

Substrate Substrate
(a) X-ray lithography (b) Resist after lithography

Plated metal layers (Normally Ni)

Metal tube (Made of Ni)

Substrate Substrate

(c)After electroplating (d) After removing resist

 The LIGA process
Materials for substrates
Start
● Substrates in LIGA process must be electrical conductive to facilitate subsequent
electroplating over photoresist mold.
● Metals such as: steel, copper plates, titanium and nickel, or
● Silicon with thin titanium or silver/chrome top layer; glass with thin metal layers.

Photoresist materials

Basic requirements:

● Must be sensitive to x-ray radiation.

● Must have thermal stability up to 140oC.
● The unexposed part must be absolutely insoluble during development.
● Good adhesion to substrate during electroplating.
 Summary on Micro manufacturing
A. Bulk micromanufacturing:
 Less expensive in the process, but material loss is high.
 Suitable for microstructures with simple geometry.
Start
 Limited to low-aspect ratio in geometry.

B. Surface micromachining:
 Requires the building of layers of materials over the substrate.
 Complex masking design and productions.
 Etching of sacrificial layers is necessary – not always easy and wasteful.
 The process is tedious and more expensive.
 There are serious engineering problems such as interfacial stresses and stiction.
 Major advantages:
● Not constrained by the thickness of silicon wafers.
● Wide choices of thin film materials to be used.
● Suitable for complex geometry such as micro valves and actuators.

C. The LIGA process:

 Most expensive in initial capital costs.
● Requires special synchrotron radiation facility for deep x-ray lithography.
 Micro injection molding technology and facility for mass productions.
 Major advantages are:
● Virtually unlimited aspect ratio of the microstructure geometry.
● Flexible in microstructure configurations and geometry.
● The only technique allows the production of metallic microstructures.
 Micro structures produced

 Using the manufacturing techniques described above , Micor-Mechanisms , Micro

Start
sensors and micro actuators can be fabricated.
 Micro structures produced
A Clamped-Clamped Beam Clamped-free beam
Start

Zig-Zag beam
 Micro fluidics

 Micro-fluidics : Precise control and manipulation of very small fluid flows on the
Start
order of microliters or Nano-liters.
 Micro-fluidic system: A system manipulating fluids in channels having cross section
dimension on less than 100 micro-meters, Smallest micro-channel: Nano-tubes

Micro-channels Nano-tubes
 Fluids in micro-fluid system

Injection of a droplet into a micro-channel.

Start
Simple fluids
liquids and gases
Complex fluids
immersed structures, surfactants,
polymers, DNA …

Cells in a micro-channel. Polymer flow in a micro-channel

 Typical fluidic components

Micro-channels and channel-circuit

Start
Functional structures Channel-circuit
Typical functional structure
• Micro-pump and switches
• Mixing and separating devices

Electroosmotic Pumping
Electro-osmotic pumping:

Movement of uncharged liquid relative

stationary charged surface ,due to an
externally applied electric field.
 Electrostatic Transducers

 Methods for sensing & actuation :Electrostatic ,Optical ,Thermal and Piezoelectric.
Start
 Electrostatic sensors and actuators operate on the principle of electric charge.
 Electrostatics work well for micro-scale devices, since the (surface area/volume) ratio
is higher for micro-devices.
 The electrostatic effect is based on surface area, while mass is based on volume, and
hence electrostatic force is good for micro-sensing and micro-actuation.
 Coulomb's Law electrostatic force between two point charges
 Electrostatic Transducers : basic principles

Sensing
capacitance between
Start moving and fixed plates change as
distance and position is changed
media is replaced
Actuation
electrostatic force (attraction) between moving and fixed plates as
a voltage is applied between them.

Two major configurations

parallel plate capacitor (out of plane)

interdigitated fingers - IDT (in plane)

A d

Parallel plate configuration

 Electrostatic Transducers : basic principles
Examples
Start
Parallel Plate Capacitor
Comb Drive Capacitor
 Electrostatic Transducers : basic principles

 For ‘sensors’, capacitive devices can be used.

Start
 A typical capacitor is comprised of two conductive elements, physically separated
from each other, using some kind of dielectric material.
Q
C
V
E  Q / A
Q A
C 
Q
d d
A

 For ‘actuators’, movable structures carrying accumulations of electric charge can be

used.
 Electrostatic Actuators

 There are two possible cases for using electric charge to generate force, and hence
Start
motion.
 Consider two parallel plates.
 Force of capacitor Actuators

• Stored energy 1 1Q 2
Start U  CV 2

2 2 C
• Force is derivative of energy with U 1 C
respect to pertinent dimensional F   V 2

d 2 d
variable
• Plug in the expression for capacitor Q A
C 
Q
d d
A
• We arrive at the expression for force U 1 A 1 CV 2
F   V 2

d 2d2 2 d
 Electrostatic Actuators

Electrostatic micro-motor
Start
 One of the first electrostatic actuators was a micromotor.
-Central rotor has one charge.
- Radial stator poles have opposite charge
-Six stator phases (pair of poles) as shown below, are turned on and off in a sequence
to cause the rotor to turn.
 Electrostatic transducers

Electrostatic micro-motor
Start

Electrostatic motor with 720 stator poles

 Electrostatic transducers

Electrostatic Comb drive devices

Start
 Electrostatic actuators can also be used to create ‘linear motion’ using a ‘comb-drive’
that makes use of interdigitated fingers.
 Electrostatic transducers

Interdigitated finger capacitors

Start
 Modeling of Comb-Drives:

 A mechanical spring constant, Km, represents the stiffness of the compliant

mechanism between the two combs
 The two types of capacitance, C, and Cf, both have substantial contributions to the
overall capacitance of the device.
 Electrostatic transducers

Interdigitated finger capacitors

Start
 The total capacitance of the system is given by:

 There are two main types of Comb-Drives:

- Transverse
- Longitudinal
 Electrostatic transducers

Transverse comb drives

Start
 The design of the flexure mechanism will determine the system stiffness and hence
axis of motion.
 Electrostatic transducers

Transverse comb drives

Start

 The design of the flexure mechanism will determine the system stiffness and hence
axis of motion.
 When the upper comb is deflected to the right, the capacitance will change between
the fingers as follows:
 Electrostatic transducers

Transverse comb drives

Start
 The total capacitance is defined as:
 During motion, the rate of capacitance change can be measured, termed the
displacement sensitivity, Sx:

 If the comb-drive is used as an actuator, the force can be represented as:

 Electrostatic transducers

Longitudinal comb drives

Start

 The total capacitance change associated with a single finger is:

 The displacement sensitivity in the longitudinal direction, Sy, is defined as:

 If the longitudinal comb-drive is used as an actuator, the force can be represented as
 Comb drive based devices

Accelerometer
Start
• It is based on transverse comb drive structure.
• A movable mass supported by cantilever beams move in response to acceleration in
one specific direction.
 Comb drive based devices

Gears & springs

Start

Mechanical springs

Position
limiter

Micro gears
 Comb drive based devices

Micro Motors
Start

Three phase electrostatic actuator.

Arrows indicate electric field and electrostatic
force.
The tangential components cause the motor to
rotate.
 Comb drive based devices

Lateral comb drive banks

Start Gear trains
,springs
Mechanical
springs

Gear train
Optical shutter