MEMS Foundry Specifications

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Services



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	Design / Engineering		Supplier can assist with concepts, manufacturing costs, manufacturing techniques and material considerations. Supplier may also be able to assist in upgrading or redesigning, re-evaluating or modernizing existing products to increase performance and/or reduce manufacturing costs. Suppliers often employ CAD, structural and thermal analysis software to improve the design process.
	Prototyping		Vendor has capacity to build a short run of representative parts for use for presentations and functional testing.
	Pilot / Scale-Up		Supplier has capabilities for providing initial pilot runs or low volume production.
	Production		Supplier has capabilities for providing high volume production.
	R & D / Development		Development of new or specialized MEMS devices and manufacturing processes on a contract basis to meet the requirements for specific applications. Also, research into underlying factors or properties required for consistently controlling material critical components and maintaining product performance.
	Specialty / Other		Other proprietary, specialized or unlisted capabilities.
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Capabilities



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	2D / Surface Micromachining		In 2D surface micromachining processes layers of material are build up with deposition processes and selectively etched of electrochemically machinined. These processes are essentially the same techniques as those used in IC fabrication from silicon wafers where the bulk of the substrate remains untouched.
	3D / Bulk Micromachining		In 3D, or bulk micromachining, large portions of the substrate are removed to form the desired structure. LIGA processes would fall into this category. Structures with greater heights can be formed because thicker substrates can be used. The bulk micromachining process is a key fabrication method used for MEMS-based photonic switching in the high-growth optical and wireless markets.
	Dielectric / CVD Thin Film		Metallization or thin film deposition using a physical vapor deposition process such as evaporation or sputtering.
	Dry Etching (Plasma / RIE)		Dry etching processes include plasma or reactive ion etching techniques to remove layers from or cut patterns into substrates.
	Inspection / Testing		Inspection encompasses physical and chemical examination of MEMS or microelectronics structures using SEM or optical microscopy, ellipsometry, spectroscopy or other analytical technique. Testing is actual wafer probing or device electrical testing (functional back end testing or parametric in process tests). Electrical functional testing is a process used to sort and/or mark die on wafers based on electrical performance. Wafer sorters or probes preform functional tests on dies in wafers or on packaged MEMS or IC devices. Functional tests verify the operation of all device functions and then defective dies or chips are marked. Ink marks were traditionally used, but electronic wafer maps are now being employed. Probing instruments are used for in-line parametric or wafer sorting electrical tests on gates, MEMS devices, IC devices or electrical circuits. In-line parametric tests are preformed on scribe line or process control monitors (SLM / PCM) to assure wafer level reliability.
	LIGA		The LIGA processes combine photolithography, electroplating and molding to obtain depth. Patterns are created in a substrate and then electroplated to create 3D molds. These molds can be used as the final product, or various materials can be cast or injected into them. LIGA falls under the High Aspect Ratio Micromachining (HARM) category because devices with very high aspect ratios can be built. Another advantage of LIGA processes is the ability to fabricate materials other than silicon can be used (e.g., metal, plastic).
	Metallization - Electroplating		Metallization techniques using an electroplating or electroplating method to deposit metal films.
	Metallization - PVD Thin Film		Metallization or thin film deposition using a physical vapor deposition process such as evaporation or sputtering.
	Oxidation / Doping		Oxidation and diffusion processes are furnacing operations. Oxidation produces dielectric oxide layers on silicon substrates. Doping introduces impurities, such as P or B in silicon semiconductors, to alter the intrinsic conductivity of the semiconductor and produce n or p type semiconductor regions. Diffusion drives the dopants into the semiconductor.
	Packaging / Backend Processing		Back end or packaging processes include dicing, backgrinding, wire bonding, die bonding, assembly and hermetic sealing. Packaging is the assembly of a device into a container or package with interconnect features that allows integration into a larger system or product.
	Photolithography		Lithography processes transfers circuit or device patterns onto a substrate using a patterned mask and a beam of light or electrons to selectively expose a photoresist layer. Uncured photoresist is removed and the wafers are exposed to an acid or chemical solution that selectively etches the uncovered regions of the substrate.
	Screen Printing		The circuit patterns are usually formed using a screen-printing process using a paste of metal or other materials that is subsequently fired onto the surface.
	Wafer Bonding		Wafer bonding processes includes anodic bonding, fusion bonding, metal bonding or polymeric bonding. Wafer bonding is used to join stacks of wafer to form reference cavities or other structures in MEMS devices.
	Wet / Chemical Etching		Wet etching processes use acids or other chemical solutions to remove layers from or cut patterns into substrates.
	Other		Other unlisted, specialized or proprietary processes.
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Materials



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	Silicon		Silicon is a metalloid element with intrinsic semiconducting properties. Silicon is a semi-insulator in its undoped pure form. Silicon is one of the most common materials used to fabricate IC and MEMS devices.
	Ceramic		Industrial ceramic materials consist of oxides, carbides, nitrides, carbon and other non-metals with high melting points. Ceramics are suitable for applications requiring wear resistance, refractoriness, low electrical resistivity or other specialized characteristics.
	Compound Semiconductor		Semiconductor materials formed from compounds of two or more elements such as gallium arsenide (GaAs).
	Glass		Glass is a homogeneous material with a random, liquid like (non-crystalline) molecular structure. The manufacturing process requires that the raw materials be heated to a temperature sufficient to produce a completely fused melt. Silicate based glasses are the most common.
	Metal / Nickel		Devices fabricated using nickel or other metals. Metals provide more mechanical strength compared to typical semiconductor materials such as silicon or germanium.
	Quartz		Quartz is a high purity, crystalline form of silica.
	Polymer / Organic		Devices fabricated using polymers, organic compounds, adhesive resins or plastic materials.
	SOI		Semiconductor on insulator (SOI) wafers or substrates such as silicon on sapphire (SOS) or SIMOX wafers.
	Specialty / Other		Other proprietary, specialized or unlisted materials.
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Location



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	North America		Companies are located in the United States, Canada or Mexico.
	United States Only		Companies are located in the United States.
	Northeast US Only		Companies are located in the Northeast United States, namely Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
	Southern US Only		Companies are located in the Southern United States, namely Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington D.C., and West Virginia.
	Southwest US Only		Companies are located in the Southwest United States, namely Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.
	Northwest US Only		Companies are located in the Northwest United States, namely Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming.
	Midwest US Only		Companies are located in the Midwest United States, namely Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
	Canada Only		Companies are located in Canada.
	South / Central America Only		Companies have facilities in South American countries such as Argentina, Brazil, or Chile; or in Central American countries such as Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama, etc.
	Europe Only		Companies are located in Europe, namely Germany, Ireland, Italy, United Kingdom, etc.
	South Asia Only		Companies are located in South Asia, namely India, Pakistan, Nepal, etc.
	Near East Only		Companies are located in the Near East, namely Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, etc.
	East Asia / Pacific Only		Companies are located in East Asia, namely China, Japan, Taiwan, etc.
	Other		Other unlisted country or region.
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MEMS Foundry Specifications

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