Title :
Electro-thermal simulations and modelling of micromachined gas sensor
Author :
Demirci, T. ; Guney, D. ; Bozkurt, A. ; Gurbuz, Y.
Author_Institution :
Fac. of Eng. & Natural Sci., Sabanci Univ., Istanbul, Turkey
Abstract :
The reliability of the membrane structure for micromachined-gas sensors is one of the main concerns in MEMS technology. The major source of this problem is the stress on the membrane. In this study, the use of SiO2/Si3N4/SiO2 stacked layers with optimized dimensions was found to reduce the stress on the membrane, and hence improve the reliability. We have also used electro-thermal simulations with finite element analysis (FEA) to model the structural properties of the membrane in order to reduce the stress. The appropriate selection of materials and dimensions yielded maximum active area temperature of 530°C at the center of the membrane with a polysilicon heater element, less than 5 V supply voltage, 40 mW of power consumption, membrane edge temperature of 177°C and acceptable mechanical stress of 0.097 GPa. Upon realizing the structure with the modeled parameters, micromachined-gas sensors could respond to many industry/environment application demands
Keywords :
finite element analysis; gas sensors; heating elements; internal stresses; membranes; micromachining; microsensors; semiconductor device models; semiconductor device reliability; silicon compounds; stress analysis; 177 C; 40 mW; 530 C; FEA; MEMS technology; Si; SiO2-Si3N4-SiO2; SiO2/Si3N4/SiO2 stacked layers; acceptable mechanical stress; electro-thermal simulations; environment application demands; finite element analysis; industry application demands; maximum active area temperature; membrane edge temperature; membrane stress; membrane structural properties; micromachined gas sensor; modelling; polysilicon heater element; power consumption; reliability; supply voltage; Analytical models; Biomembranes; Electricity supply industry; Energy consumption; Finite element methods; Mechanical sensors; Micromechanical devices; Stress; Temperature sensors; Voltage;
Conference_Titel :
Microelectromechanical Systems Conference, 2001
Conference_Location :
Berkeley, CA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-7224-7
DOI :
10.1109/MEMSC.2001.992752
