Study of environmental influences on the behavior of a capacitive pressure sensor

In the frame of a bilateral project Romania-Slovenia (partners: University ¿Politehnica¿ of Bucharest and ¿Jozef Stefan¿ Institute from Ljubljana) a capacitive pressure sensor with air using LTCC (low temperature co-fired ceramic) and thick-film materials and technologies was developed. After establishing the optimal dimensions from the point of view of the sensitivity as well as costs, question arise concerning the functioning of the sensor in real employment conditions. It has been observed that temperature as well as humidity influence the way the sensor behaves, requiring additional calibration actions. The influence of water vapors was also of interest. In order to fully characterize the sensor, all this influences need to be studied. This paper focuses on characterizing the sensor by highlighting these effects through measurements and, where possible, through simulations.