Title :
Micromachined silicon microvalve
Author :
Ohnstein, T. ; Fukiura, T. ; Ridley, J. ; Bonne, U.
Author_Institution :
Honeywell Inc., Bloomington, MN, USA
Abstract :
The fabrication and experimental results of an electrostatically actuated silicon microvalve which modulates a gas flow are presented. The microvalve converts an electric signal to a pneumatic signal for pressure or gas-flow control. Application areas for the microvalve include pneumatic flow control for industrial, commercial, and medical applications. The microvalve is integrally fabricated on a single silicon wafer using surface and bulk micromachining. The microvalve operates against pressures of up to 114 mmHg and flows of up to 150 sccm with a 30 volt signal and hold back pressures of up to 760 mmHg. The valve may be operated in DC or pulse width-modulated voltage modes
Keywords :
electropneumatic control equipment; elemental semiconductors; flow control; silicon; valves; 114 mmHg; 760 mmHg; DC mode; Si wafer; bulk micromachining; electrostatically actuated; gas flow; hold back pressures; microvalve; pneumatic flow control; pneumatic signal; pulse width-modulated voltage modes; surface micromachining; Back; Biomedical equipment; Fabrication; Fluid flow; Industrial control; Medical services; Micromachining; Microvalves; Pressure control; Silicon;
Conference_Titel :
Micro Electro Mechanical Systems, 1990. Proceedings, An Investigation of Micro Structures, Sensors, Actuators, Machines and Robots. IEEE
Conference_Location :
Napa Valley, CA
DOI :
10.1109/MEMSYS.1990.110256
