Vapor deposition of anti-stiction layer for micromechanical devices
First Claim
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1. A method of passivating the surfaces of a micromechanical device, the method comprising:
- providing a micromechanical device within a sealed chamber;
pulling a partial vacuum in the chamber;
introducing a vapor consisting of passivants to an inlet to the chamber having a filter-diffuser located thereat, the passivants include perfluordecanoic acid (PFDA);
simultaneously, at the filter-diffuser, filtering the vapor arriving at the inlet and injecting the vapor in multiple directions to uniformly distribute the vapor within the chamber, the vapor being injected through a manifold having a cylindrical body portion coupled to a central cylindrical cavity, wherein filters are attached to the periphery thereof and extend radially outward from the body portion;
flowing the vapor from the manifold to the central cylindrical cavity and radially outward through the filters and into the chamber;
filtering the vapor at the inlet such that pores in the filter walls allow individual PFDA molecules to flow through the filter walls but that filter out larger PFDA particles; and
allowing the vapor to react with the surfaces of the micromechanical device for a predetermined time.
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Abstract
A vapor deposition system includes a filter-diffuser device connected to a vapor inlet within a vacuum chamber for simultaneously filtering inflowing vapor to remove particulate matter while injecting vapor containing perfluordecanoic acid (PFDA) into the chamber through radially arranged porous metal filters to enable the deposition of a uniform monolayer of PFDA molecules onto the surfaces of a micromechanical device, such as a digital micromirror device.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method of passivating the surfaces of a micromechanical device, the method comprising:
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providing a micromechanical device within a sealed chamber; pulling a partial vacuum in the chamber; introducing a vapor consisting of passivants to an inlet to the chamber having a filter-diffuser located thereat, the passivants include perfluordecanoic acid (PFDA); simultaneously, at the filter-diffuser, filtering the vapor arriving at the inlet and injecting the vapor in multiple directions to uniformly distribute the vapor within the chamber, the vapor being injected through a manifold having a cylindrical body portion coupled to a central cylindrical cavity, wherein filters are attached to the periphery thereof and extend radially outward from the body portion; flowing the vapor from the manifold to the central cylindrical cavity and radially outward through the filters and into the chamber; filtering the vapor at the inlet such that pores in the filter walls allow individual PFDA molecules to flow through the filter walls but that filter out larger PFDA particles; and allowing the vapor to react with the surfaces of the micromechanical device for a predetermined time. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method of passivating the surfaces of a micromechanical device, the method comprising:
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providing a micromechanical device within a sealed chamber; pulling a partial vacuum in the chamber; introducing a vapor containing passivants to an inlet to the chamber; simultaneously filtering the vapor arriving at the inlet and injecting the vapor in multiple directions to uniformly distribute the vapor within the chamber, the vapor being injected through a manifold having a cylindrical body portion coupled to a central cylindrical cavity, wherein filters are attached to the periphery thereof and extend radially outward from the body portion; flowing the vapor from the manifold to the central cylindrical cavity and radially outward through the filters and into the chamber; filtering the vapor at the inlet such that pores in the filter walls allow individual passivant molecules to flow through the filter walls but that filter out larger passivant particles; and allowing the vapor to react with the surfaces of the micromechanical device for a predetermined time. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method of passivating the surfaces of a micromechanical device, the method comprising:
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providing a micromechanical device within a sealed chamber; pulling a partial vacuum in the chamber having a filter-diffuser located thereat; introducing a vapor consisting of passivants to an inlet to the chamber, the vapor being injected through a manifold having a cylindrical body portion coupled to a central cylindrical cavity, wherein filters are attached to the periphery thereof and extend radially outward from the body portion; flowing the vapor from the manifold to the central cylindrical cavity and radially outward through the filters and into the chamber; filtering the vapor at the filter-diffuser at the inlet such that pores in the filter walls of the filter-diffuser allow individual passivant molecules to flow through the filter walls but that filter out larger passivant particles; and allowing the vapor to react with the surfaces of the micromechanical device for a predetermined time. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21)
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Specification