A micro XY-stage with a 5 5 mm 2 -area shuttle is fabricated for application in a nanometer-scale data storage device. A central shuttle of the device is designed as a large square on which a high-density recording medium is deposited. Perpendicularly combined comb-drive actuators allow the large shuttle free access in the x-y plane. No etching holes on the central shuttle are preferred in order to maximize the effective recording area. Therefore, a novel release process, Micro-Channel Assisted Release Process ( CARP) is proposed to release a large plate structure without any etching holes and to resist downward sticking. The static and dynamic strokes of the device were measured. Mechanical interferences between x-and y-directional drives were estimated by finite-element method (FEM) analysis and compared with the experimental results.[876]Index Terms-High-density storage, large area shuttle, micro XY-stage, scanning probe microscopy (SPM), micro-channel assisted release process ( CARP).
In this paper we describe a single-crystal silicon (SCS) micro XY-stage with a 50 × 50 μm2 scanning range. A simple fabrication process using a silicon-on-glass substrate is proposed for a silicon high aspect ratio structure (HARS) and easy release. The high aspect ratio SCS actuator is achieved by deep reactive ion etching and is released simply by glass etching in a hydrofluoric acid solution. The sticking problem is removed by a 100 μm deep etching of the glass substrate during the release process. The static travel range of the fabricated actuator is measured using a built-in scale and a map of the mechanical cross talk between the X- and Y-axis driving is constructed. The resonant frequency is measured at 360 Hz in air.
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