Reliability of silicon nitride as structural material in MEMS

Robert Kazinczi; Jeff R. Mollinger; Andre Bossche

doi:10.1117/12.360469

3 September 1999 Reliability of silicon nitride as structural material in MEMS

Robert Kazinczi, Jeff R. Mollinger, Andre Bossche

Proceedings Volume 3875, Materials and Device Characterization in Micromachining II; (1999) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.360469
Event: Symposium on Micromachining and Microfabrication, 1999, Santa Clara, CA, United States

Abstract

Micromechanical devices have just entered out everyday life and have a wide range of applications in the near future. Therefore a strong need arises for elaborate study on reliability of micromechanical structures under various conditions and environments. Silicon nitride is one of the basic structural materials in MEMS devices due to its good mechanical properties. Extreme aspect ratio structures like long cantilevers or large membranes are often built of thin silicon nitride films. They serve mostly as mechanical supporting components forming multilayer structures. Precise characterization of the mechanical properties is required for proper design and reliable device operation. Atomic force microscope was utilized for measurement of Young's modulus and spring constant of silicon nitride cantilever beams. Static and dynamic accelerated aging tests were conducted in order to predict the long-term behavior of the structures. Two reversed failure mechanisms were found during the aging tests, both substantially effecting the device operation.

Citation Download Citation

Robert Kazinczi, Jeff R. Mollinger, and Andre Bossche "Reliability of silicon nitride as structural material in MEMS", Proc. SPIE 3875, Materials and Device Characterization in Micromachining II, (3 September 1999); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.360469

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