LIGA: a fabrication technology for industry?

Ronald Albert Lawes; Graham G. Arthur; Andreas Schneider

doi:10.1117/12.448845

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19 November 2001 LIGA: a fabrication technology for industry?

Ronald Albert Lawes, Graham G. Arthur, Andreas Schneider

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Proceedings Volume 4593, Design, Characterization, and Packaging for MEMS and Microelectronics II; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.448845
Event: International Symposium on Microelectronics and MEMS, 2001, Adelaide, Australia

Abstract

LIGA is a technology that offers significant advantages where high accuracy, high aspect ratio microstructures are required. The application of LIGA to the manufacture of real products has been delayed by technical problems that exist with the individual process steps and the limited availability of integrated facilities, enabling users to subcontract the complete manufacturing process. These problems have been dominated by the limited availability of high quality masks, long and expensive exposure at synchrotron radiation sources and the electrodeposition of thick stress-free layers. This paper describes the practical solutions developed at the Central Microstructure Facility, RAL, for the key process steps of manufacturing high precision gold-on- beryllium masks, exposure of SU-8 resist using a 2 GeV synchrotron, electrodeposition of deep ($GTR 500 mm), stress-free metal layers and resist stripping procedures fro 3 micrometers minimum features up to 500 mm deep on 4-6 inch wafers. A cost model shows that the reduction in the exposure time using SU-8 instead of PMMA resist may enable x-ray LIGA to be cost competitive with other techniques such as uv LIGA, DRIE or direct laser ablation.

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Ronald Albert Lawes, Graham G. Arthur, and Andreas Schneider "LIGA: a fabrication technology for industry?", Proc. SPIE 4593, Design, Characterization, and Packaging for MEMS and Microelectronics II, (19 November 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.448845

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