Nanocomposites: New Building Blocks for MEMS
Alfredo M. Morales*, Marcela Gonzales, and Jill M. Hruby
Sandia National Laboratories
Livermore, CA 94550
This is an abstract
for a presentation given at the
Seventh
Foresight Conference on Molecular Nanotechnology.
There will be a link from here to the full article when it is
available on the web.
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are currently built from silicon, some metals, and a few other materials but few ceramic materials are available for microfabrication. Contrast this situation with the fact that many revolutionary devices and processes in the macroscopic world involve ceramics and composites. The incorporation of ceramics into microscopic devices would allow the exploitation of novel properties such as increased toughness, high temperature inertness, chemical and biological compatibility, magnetism, piezoelectricity, and photochromism.
In this talk, we will present recent results on the fabrication of functional MEMS microcomponents from ceramic nanocomposites. Our fabrication technique consists of: 1) formulation of a nanocomposite mixture; 2) micromold filling; 3) curing and planarization; 4) chemical removal of the mold. Micromolded components can be produced free standing or assembled on substrates. By using particles with nanometer diameters, we are able to mold components with lateral dimensions in the order of a few microns. Microscopy studies indicate that molding of submicron size features should be possible with nanocomposites. This process is compatible with existing integrated circuit manufacturing processes, so incorporation of this technique into semiconductor fabrication lines should be feasible.
The submitted manuscript has been authored by a contractor of the United States Government under contract. Accordingly the United States Government retains a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish or reproduce the published form of this contribution, or allow others to do so, for United States Government purposes.
*Corresponding Address:
Alfredo M. Morales
Sandia National Laboratories
7011 East Ave MS 9405, Livermore, CA 94550
Phone: (925) 294-3540; Fax: (925) 294-3410
E-mail: amorale@sandia.gov; Web: http://daytona.ca.sandia.gov/LIGA/
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