Micro electronic device having CMOS circuit and MEMS resonator formed on common silicon substrate

• US 8,692,338 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2012
• Issued: 04/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PixArt Imaging Incorporated
• Original Assignee: PixArt Imaging Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Chuan-Wei, Lee, Sheng-Ta, Hsu, Hsin-Hui
• Primary Examiner(s): Smoot, Stephen W
• Application Number:
  US13/673,459
• Publication Number:
  US 20130069177A1
• Time in Patent Office: 515 Days
• Field of Search: 257/E21.486
• US Class Current: 257/415
• CPC Class Codes: B81B 2201/0271 Resonators; ultrasonic resonators
• CPC Class Codes: B81C 1/00182 Arrangements of deformable or non-deformable structures, e.g. membrane and cavity for use in a transducer
• CPC Class Codes: B81C 1/00246 Monolithic integration, i.e. micromechanical structure and electronic processing unit are integrated on the same substrate
• CPC Class Codes: B81C 2203/0714 Forming the micromechanical structure with a CMOS process
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 3/0073 Integration with other electronic structures

Abstract

A method for fabricating a MEMS resonator is provided. A stacked main body including a silicon substrate, a plurality of metallic layers and an isolation layer is formed and has a first etching channel extending from the metallic layers into the silicon substrate. The isolation layer is filled in the first etching channel. The stacked main body also has a predetermined suspended portion. Subsequently, a portion of the isolation layer is removed so that a second etching channel is formed and the remained portion of the isolation layer covers an inner sidewall of the first etching channel. Afterwards, employing the isolation layer that covers the inner sidewall of the first etching channel as a mask, an isotropic etching process through the second etching channel is applied to the silicon substrate, thereby forming the MEMS resonator suspending above the silicon substrate. A micro electronic device is also provided.

Claims

1. A micro electronic device, comprising:

a silicon substrate having a hollow region;

a CMOS circuit formed on the silicon substrate; and

an MEMS resonator partially suspended above the hollow region and separated from the CMOS circuit by at least a second etching channel, wherein the second etching channel communicates with the hollow region and the MEMS resonator comprises;

a silicon layer;

a plurality of metallic layers disposed above the silicon layer; and

an isolation layer covering a portion of sidewalls of the silicon layer.

2. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the MEMS resonator further comprises an insulating layer disposed between the metallic layers and the silicon layer.

3. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the insulating layer comprises non-doped polysilicon.

4. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the metallic layers comprise a plurality of first metallic layers and a plurality of second metallic layers, and the first metallic layers and the second metallic layers are alternately stacked.

5. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 4, wherein a material of the first metallic layers comprises tungsten.

6. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 4, wherein a material of the second metallic layers comprises aluminum.

7. The micro electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the isolation layer comprises silicon oxide.