Materials Science Forum, Vol.389-3, 755-758, 2002
Development of a multilayer SiC surface micromachining process with capabilities and design rules comparable to conventional polysilicon surface micromachining
This paper presents a review of our latest results in the development of a multilayer surface micromachining process for SiC microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). The process, known as the Multi-User Silicon Carbide (MUSiC) Process, uses four polycrystalline SiC (Poly-Sic) structural layers in conjunction with polysilicon, SiO2 and Si3N4 films to create SiC surface micromachined structures such as accelerometers, micromotors and pressure sensors. Issues related to the dry etching of multilevel SiC structures necessitate the use of micromolding techniques to pattern the poly-SiC layers. Details regarding the micromolding process, multilayer device fabrication, and issues related to film deposition techniques are presented.