Abstract:
An integrated package of at least one environmental sensor and at least one MEMS acoustic sensor is disclosed. The package contains a shared port that exposes both sensors to the environment, wherein the environmental sensor measures characteristics of the environment and the acoustic sensor measures sound waves. The port exposes the environmental sensor to an air flow and the acoustic sensor to sound waves. An example of the acoustic sensor is a microphone and an example of the environmental sensor is a humidity sensor.
Abstract:
A device/method for sensing a physical parameter, including a sensor die and a stress-sensitive circuit. The sensor die includes a semiconductor substrate and a cavity that creates an elastic element that bends in response to the physical parameter exerted on the sensor die. The elastic element includes at least at least one rigid island formed within the cavity, a thin area surrounding the at least one rigid island and having smaller thickness than the rigid island, and at least one stress concentrator at least partially formed in the thin area of the elastic element on the side of the substrate opposite the cavity. The stress-sensitive circuit includes at least one stress-sensitive component formed in the thin area of the elastic element. The at least one stress concentrator increases stress in the locations of the at least one stress-sensitive component resulting in an increase of the device sensitivity to the physical parameter.
Abstract:
Described herein is a miniaturized and ruggedized wafer level MEMS force sensor composed of a base and a cap. The sensor employs multiple flexible membranes, a mechanical overload stop, a retaining wall, and piezoresistive strain gauges.
Abstract:
The invention relates to a device comprising a base substrate(700) with a micro component (702) attached thereto. Suitably it is provided with routing elements (704) for conducting signals to and from said component (702). It also comprises spacer members (706) which also can act as conducting structures for routing signals vertically. There is a capping structure (708) of a glass material, provided above the base substrate (700), bonded via said spacer members (706), preferably by eutectic bonding, wherein the capping structure (708) comprises vias (710) comprising metal for providing electrical connection through said capping structure. The vias can be made by a stamping/pressing method entailing pressing needles under heating to soften the glass and applying pressure, to a predetermined depth in the glass. However, other methods are possible, e-g- drilling, etching, blasting.
Abstract:
In one embodiment, the process flow for a capacitive pressures sensor is combined with the process flow for an inertial sensor. In this way, an inertial sensor is realized within the membrane layer of the pressure sensor. The device layer is simultaneously used as z-axis electrode for out-of-plane sensing in the inertial sensor, and/or as the wiring layer for the inertial sensor. The membrane layer (or cap layer) of the pressure sensor process flow is used to define the inertial sensor sensing structures. Insulating nitride plugs in the membrane layer are used to electrically decouple the various sensing structures for a multi-axis inertial sensor, allowing for fully differential sensing.
Abstract:
A microelectromechanical pressure sensor structure that comprises a planar base and side walls and a diaphragm plate. The side walls extend circumferentially away from the planar base to a top surface of the side walls. The planar base, the side walls and the diaphragm plate are attached to each other to form a hermetically closed gap in a reference pressure, and a top edge of the inner surfaces of the side walls forms a periphery of a diaphragm. The diaphragm plate comprises one or more planar material layers of which a first planar material layer spans over the periphery of the diaphragm. The top surface of the side walls comprises at least one isolation area that is not covered by the first planar material layer.