Off substrate flip-chip apparatus

• US 7,067,892 B1
• Filed: 10/16/2003
• Issued: 06/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Air Force
• Original Assignee: United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Air Force
• Inventors: Michalicek, Mark A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Bradley K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MENZ, DOUGLAS M
• Application Number:
  US10/690,158
• Time in Patent Office: 985 Days
• Field of Search: 257/414, 257/415, 359/291
• US Class Current: 257/415
• CPC Class Codes: B81C 3/002 Aligning microparts

Abstract

A flip-chip micromechanical device in which one module of a flip-chip device is stabilized in the substrate-free condition to a degree permitting its successful combination with a second module of the flip-chip device without the benefit of a supporting but interfering substrate element. An etch plate header and coupling tethers provide supporting rigidity to the substrate removed module during its manipulation sequence. Locking of the substrate-free module into a manipulation tolerant and manageable, even by hand, cantilevered status is included. Simplified off chip fabrication of MEMS devices in low cost facilities having only basic alignment equipment is supported by the invention.

Claims

1. Rotationally mergeable MEMS apparatus comprising the combination of:

an electronic circuit module having a MEMS active element controlling output electrode disposed in an upper layer output location thereof;

a mating MEMS active element module having an electromagnetic field movable active element disposed in an exposed, said output electrode corresponding location thereof, said MEMS active element module including module supporting flexible tensile members connected with a substrate hinge-mounted sacrificial MEMS active element module support element;

a MEMS active element module physical support element latching member movably mounted on said substrate and disposable in a position of mutually locked engagement with said substrate hinge mounted MEMS active element module support element in a selected off-chip and rotated about said hinge location thereof adjacent said electronic circuit module.

2. The rotationally mergeable MEMS apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MEMS active element module physical support element includes a slider element engageable with a tongue portion of said MEMS active element module physical support element in said position of mutually locked engagement.

3. The rotationally mergeable MEMS apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MEMS active element module physical support element latching member is comprised of semiconductor materials included in said MEMS active element module.

4. The rotationally mergeable MEMS apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MEMS active element module physical support element latching member, said module supporting flexible tensile members, said hinge-mounted sacrificial MEMS active element module support element and said MEMS active element module are comprised of silicon semiconductor materials.