Integrated electromechanical switch and tunable capacitor and method of making the same
First Claim
1. An electromechanical device comprising:
- a substrate having a first cavity formed therein;
a movable beam attached to the substrate, the movable beam being formed from a conductive layer and at least one dielectric layer; and
a fixed beam positioned above and separated from the movable beam by a second cavity formed under the fixed beam, the fixed beam being formed from a conductive layer and a dielectric mechanical support layer, the movable beam being activated by an applied current or voltage to control its contact with the fixed beam, the movable beam having a share that does not completely close the opening between the first and second cavities.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A monolithically integrated, electromechanical microwave switch, capable of handling signals from DC to millimeter-wave frequencies, and an integrated electromechanical tunable capacitor are described. Both electromechanical devices include movable beams actuated either by thermo-mechanical or by electrostatic forces. The devices are fabricated directly on finished silicon-based integrated circuit wafers, such as CMOS, BiCMOS or bipolar wafers. The movable beams are formed by selectively removing the supporting silicon underneath the thin films available in a silicon-based integrated circuit technology, which incorporates at least one polysilicon layer and two metallization layers. A cavity and a thick, low-loss metallization are used to form an electrode above the movable beam. A thick mechanical support layer is formed on regions where the cavity is located, or substrate is bulk-micro-machined, i.e., etched.
46 Citations
26 Claims
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1. An electromechanical device comprising:
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a substrate having a first cavity formed therein;
a movable beam attached to the substrate, the movable beam being formed from a conductive layer and at least one dielectric layer; and
a fixed beam positioned above and separated from the movable beam by a second cavity formed under the fixed beam, the fixed beam being formed from a conductive layer and a dielectric mechanical support layer, the movable beam being activated by an applied current or voltage to control its contact with the fixed beam, the movable beam having a share that does not completely close the opening between the first and second cavities. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A electromechanical device comprising:
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a semiconductor substrate;
a movable beam formed on the substrate by a standard integrated process flow from at least one conductive layer and plurality of dielectric layers;
the movable beam being attached to the substrate at one or more points, the semiconductor substrate being selectively etched underneath the movable beam;
a fixed beam formed directly above the movable beam and separated from the movable beam by an air cavity, the fixed beam being formed from at least one conductive layer, plurality of dielectric layers and at least one mechanical support layer; and
an integrated circuit also formed on the substrate, the integrated circuit sensing and controlling the position of the movable beam by controlling the voltage or current flowing to the movable beam. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification