A post processing approach for manufacturing high-density stretchable sensor arrays

A method for fabricating stretchable sensor arrays consisting of rigid islands attached to a stretchable membrane is proposed. The method utilizes a CMOS compatible post processing approach, where the sensor elements and the underlying electronics are fabricated first, followed by a sequence of etching steps and polymer spin coating that result in the formation of the stretchable array. The elements of the array are connected by free-standing interconnects that are prefabricated in the metal stack of the CMOS. The presented fabrication results demonstrate the feasibility of manufacturing of fine-pitch, high density arrays where the interconnects are completely separated from the stretchable substrate allowing for high stretchability.