Advanced deep reactive ion etching: a versatile tool for microelectromechanical systems

Abstract

Advanced deep reactive ion etching (ADRIE) is a new tool for the fabrication of bulk micromachined devices. Different sensors and actuators which use ADRIE alone or combined with other technologies such as surface micromachining of silicon are presented here. These examples demonstrate the potential and the design freedom of this tool, allowing a large number of different shapes to be patterned and new smart devices to be realized.

Ultrasonic Transducers

“…To fulfill these requirements, DRIE process is developed. By exploiting the new opportunities provided by this powerful tool, many attractive MEMS devices have been fabricated [62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70].…”

Development of Magnetically Excited Flexural Plate Wave Devices for Implementation as Physical, Chemical, and Acoustic Sensors, and as Integrated Micro-Pumps for Sensored Systems

“…15,16 The utilization of highdensity plasmas (HDP) including electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) etch systems and the development of the "Bosch" deep reactive ion etch (DRIE) process 17 has contributed significantly to the development of high-aspect ratio, deep Si etching. 18,19,20,21,22,23 HDP etch systems typically yield higher etch rates under less energetic ion conditions than more conventional reactive ion etch (RIE) systems. This has been attributed to plasma densities that are 2 to 4 orders of magnitude higher and the ability to effectively decouple ion energy and plasma density.…”

“…The recent development of a DRIE Si etch process has resulted in anisotropic profiles at room temperature, etch rates > 3.0 µm/min, aspect ratios > 30:1, and good dimensional control. [19][20][21][22][23] Additionally, the DRIE process has shown etch selectivities of Si to photoresist > 75:1 thereby eliminating the process complexity of hard etch masks for features deeper than 100 µm.…”

Improvement of the optical and morphological properties of microlens arrays fabricated by laser using a sol–gel coating

“…Lithography techniques require advanced facilities and numerous process steps. A big number of researchers have demonstrated the fabrication of micro-optical elements in glass using electron beam lithography, photolithography, and wet and dry etching [8][9][10]. These techniques provide high-quality micro-optics systems, however they require very specific and sophisticated working conditions; what increase their cost.…”