The present disclosure relates to an acoustic wave device having a void portion below a piezoelectric film.
Patent Document 1 below describes a piezoelectric device having a void portion. In this piezoelectric device, an electrode is provided on each of the upper surface and the lower surface of a piezoelectric body. In addition, the void portion is provided below the piezoelectric body. A pass-through portion having a substantially frame-like shape is provided outside the region in which the upper electrode and the lower electrode face each other. This pass-through portion passes through the piezoelectric film that excludes a drawn electrode portion and reaches the void portion.
In the piezoelectric device described in Patent Document 1, the piezoelectric body portion surrounded by the pass-through portion having a substantially frame-like shape undergoes flexural vibration. The characteristics of the flexural vibration are improved because the pass-through portion is provided. However, since the pass-through portion is provided, there is a problem in that mechanical strength is insufficient. For example, in an acoustic wave device or the like, when the thickness of the piezoelectric body is smaller, a decrease in mechanical strength becomes a more notable problem.
One aspect of the present disclosure is to provide an acoustic wave device having both improved characteristics and enhanced mechanical strength.
In one exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an acoustic wave device including: a support substrate; an intermediate film provided on the support substrate; a piezoelectric film provided on the intermediate film, the piezoelectric film having a first main surface and a second main surface that face away from the first main surface; and a first electrode provided on the first main surface of the piezoelectric film, in which, in plan view from the first main surface of the piezoelectric film, on a side of the second main surface of the piezoelectric film, a void portion is provided to overlap at least a part of the first electrode, and a groove portion is provided to pass through at least a part of the piezoelectric film but not reach the void portion.
Exemplary advantages of the present disclosure include an acoustic wave device having improved characteristics and enhanced mechanical strength.
The present disclosure will be clarified by describing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings.
It should be noted that the embodiments described in this specification are exemplary and that partial replacement or combinations of the structures of different embodiments are possible without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
An acoustic wave device 1 includes a support substrate 2. The support substrate 2 is made of Si. However, the support substrate 2 may include a semiconductor other than Si and an appropriate dielectric such as and Al2O3.
The support substrate 2 has a void portion 7 that is open in an upper surface 2a. The void portion 7 passes through the support substrate 2 and reaches the lower surface thereof in the exemplary embodiment but may be a concave portion that does not reach the lower surface of the support substrate 2.
An intermediate film 3 is provided on an upper surface 2a of the support substrate 2. The intermediate film 3 is made of an appropriate dielectric. In the exemplary embodiment, the intermediate film 3 is made of silicon oxide. In this case, the temperature characteristics of the acoustic wave device can be easily improved. It should be noted that the intermediate film 3 may be made of an organic material without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In this case, the acoustic wave device 1 can be easily manufactured. The intermediate film 3 has a lower surface 3b in contact with the upper surface 2a of the support substrate 2 and an upper surface 3a facing away from the lower surface 3b. The piezoelectric film 4 is laminated on the upper surface 3a. The piezoelectric film 4 is made of a piezoelectric monocrystal or a piezoelectric ceramic. Preferably, the piezoelectric film 4 is made of a piezoelectric monocrystal of lithium niobate, lithium tantalate, quartz, or the like. In the exemplary embodiment, the piezoelectric film 4 is made of lithium niobate.
The piezoelectric film 4 has a first main surface 4a and a second main surface 4b that face away from each other. The second main surface 4b is laminated on the upper surface 3a of the intermediate film 3.
A multilayer body including the piezoelectric film 4 and the intermediate film 3 has a groove portion 10 that extends from the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4 toward the intermediate film 3.
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A first electrode 5 is provided on the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4 in the region surrounded by the groove portion 10. In addition, a second electrode 6 is provided on the second main surface 4b. As illustrated in
The first electrode 5 and the second electrode 6 have rectangular shapes. In addition, an exciting portion is formed by the portion in which the first electrode 5 overlaps the second electrode 6 via the piezoelectric film 4.
The piezoelectric film 4 has a first end surface 4c located on the side of the first electrode 5 and a second end surface 4d located on the side opposite to the first electrode 5 with the groove portion 10 sandwiched therebetween. That is, the groove portion 10 is surrounded by the first end surface 4c, the second end surface 4d, and the bottom surface of the groove portion 10. Although not particularly limited, in the exemplary embodiment, the first end surface 4c is flush with the side surface of the first electrode 5 that faces the groove portion 10, that is, a part of the side surface of the first electrode 5.
On the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4, terminal electrodes 8 and 9 are provided outside the region in which the void portion 7 is provided. The terminal electrode 8 is connected to the drawn electrode portion 5a. The terminal electrode 9 is connected to the drawn electrode portion 6a. The terminal electrodes 8 and 9 are used to electrically connect to the outside.
The first and second electrodes 5 and 6 and the terminal electrodes 8 and 9 are made of suitable metals or alloys including, for example, Al, AlCu, and Ti.
When an AC electric field from the terminal electrodes 8 and 9 is applied to the acoustic wave device 1, the exciting portion vibrates and generates an acoustic wave. The acoustic wave device 1 can be used as a resonator by using the resonance property of the acoustic wave.
It should be noted that the thickness of the piezoelectric film 4 is not particularly limited but is usually approximately 100 nm to several micrometers. In addition, the thickness of the intermediate film 3 is also not particularly limited but is approximately 100 nm to several micrometers.
In addition, the flat area of the exciting portion is not particularly limited but is approximately 0.04 μm2 or less. In this case, a bulk wave as an acoustic wave can be effectively excited by the exciting portion, and the resonance characteristics due to the bulk wave can be used.
In particular, in plan view from the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4, the exciting portion, that is, at least a part of the first electrode 5, overlaps the void portion 7, and the region that overlaps the void portion 7 in plan view has the groove portion 10. Accordingly, an acoustic wave can be effectively excited by the exciting portion to improve characteristics. In addition, the groove portion 10 does not pass through the intermediate film 3 and does not reach the void portion 7. That is, in plan view, the groove portion 10 is provided so as to pass through at least a part of the piezoelectric film 4 and not reach the void portion 7 in the region that overlaps the void portion 7. Accordingly, mechanical strength can also be enhanced.
Furthermore, in the acoustic wave device 1, the first end surface 4c is flush with a part of the side surface of the first electrode 5. In this structure, characteristics can be further improved by more effectively exciting an acoustic wave in the exciting portion.
In the present disclosure, as described above, characteristics can be improved by providing the groove portion, and mechanical strength can be improved despite providing the groove portion.
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Next, as illustrated in
After that, the piezoelectric wafer 4A is thinned by grinding, etching, or the like. In this way, as illustrated in
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Since the manufacturing method described above can be used in the acoustic wave device 1, the depth of the groove portion 10 can be easily controlled when forming the groove portion 10. Accordingly, the groove portion 10 that does not reach the void portion 7 can be easily formed with great certainty.
It should be noted that, in the acoustic wave device 1, at least a part of the groove portion 10 may be disposed in a cleavage plane of the piezoelectric film 4. When an anisotropic piezoelectric monocrystal substrate including lithium niobate, lithium tantalate, crystal, or the like is used as the piezoelectric film 4, formation of the groove portion 10 in the cleavage plane, in which a crack may easily occur, can suppress a crack from occurring, and mechanical strength is enhanced.
In an acoustic wave device 21, the depth of the groove portion 10 is greater than the depth of the groove portion 10 of the acoustic wave device 1 according to the first exemplary embodiment. That is, as illustrated in
In an acoustic wave device 41, the bottom surface of the groove portion 10 is flush with the interface between the piezoelectric film 4 and the intermediate film 3. As described above, the bottom surface of the groove portion 10 may be located at the interface between the piezoelectric film 4 and the intermediate film 3. Even in this case, characteristics can be improved and mechanical strength can be enhanced at the same time.
In addition, in the acoustic wave device 41, the groove portion 10 is located outside the exciting portion in which the first electrode 5 and the second electrode 6 face each other. That is, the first end surface 4c of the piezoelectric film 4 exposed to the groove portion 10 is located outside the outer peripheral edge of the first electrode 5. As described above, the groove portion 10 need not be in contact with the exciting portion and may be located outside the exciting portion. In this structure, since stress does not concentrate on the interface between the first end surface 4c and the first electrode 5 or the piezoelectric film 4, peeling between the piezoelectric film 4 and the first electrode 5 is less likely to occur.
In an acoustic wave device 51, the first end surface 4c of the piezoelectric film 4 exposed to the groove portion 10 is located inside the region in which the first electrode 5 and the second electrode 6 face each other. As described above, the first end surface 4c of the piezoelectric film 4 may be located inside the outer peripheral edge of the first electrode 5. Even in this case, characteristics can be improved and mechanical strength can be enhanced.
In an acoustic wave device 61, the first end surface 4c of the piezoelectric film 4 is an inclined surface within the groove portion 10. In addition, the second end surface 4d of the piezoelectric film 4 located outside the exciting portion is also an inclined surface. As described above, the first and second end surfaces 4c and 4d that form the groove portion 10 may be inclined surfaces.
In the acoustic wave device 61, the first end surface 4c and the second end surface 4d are inclined away from each other toward the second main surface 4b of the piezoelectric film 4 from the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4.
In an acoustic wave device 71, the first and second end surfaces 4c and 4d are inclined oppositely to those of the acoustic wave device 61 illustrated in
As described above, the directions in which the first and second end surfaces 4c and 4d constituting the groove portion 10 are inclined may be any of the directions in
It should be noted that, in
An acoustic wave device 81 has a dielectric material 82 in the groove portion 10. Although not particularly limited, in the exemplary embodiment, the material of the dielectric material 82 is identical to the material of the intermediate film 3. That is, the groove portion 10 can be easily filled with the dielectric material 82 by, for example, laminating the intermediate film 3 after the groove portion 10 is formed.
As in the exemplary embodiment, the groove portion 10 may be filled with the dielectric material 82. In this case, mechanical strength can be further enhanced.
It should be noted that the dielectric material 82 is not particularly limited, and various dielectrics, such as silicon oxide and alumina, may be used. Preferably, the dielectric material may have a Young's modulus lower than that of the piezoelectric film 4. As a result, characteristics can be improved with certainty.
In addition, in the acoustic wave device 81, the groove portion 10 passes through the piezoelectric film 4, and the upper surface of the dielectric material 82 is exposed on the first main surface 4a of the piezoelectric film 4. In contrast, as illustrated in
It should be noted that the groove portion 10 is filled with the dielectric material 82 in an acoustic wave device 91, but the groove portion 10 need not be filled with the dielectric material 82.
In addition, the groove portion 10 is fully filled with the dielectric material 82 in the acoustic wave devices 81 and 91, but the groove portion 10 may be partially filled with the dielectric material 82. For example, the upper surface of the dielectric material 82 may be located below the upper end of the groove portion 10. In addition, the dielectric material 82 may be laminated on the first end surface 4c or the second end surface 4d, and a cavity surrounded by the dielectric material 82 may be present.
In an acoustic wave device 101, the first electrode 5 is an interdigital transducer (IDT) electrode and the second electrode is not provided. As described above, the acoustic wave device according to the present disclosure need not have the second electrode. In this case, application of an AC electric field to the IDT electrode as the first electrode 5 excites the piezoelectric film 4, and the resonance characteristics or the like in accordance with the excited acoustic wave can be used. In the acoustic wave device 101 according to the exemplary embodiment as well, since the groove portion 10 that does not to reach the void portion 7 is provided, characteristics can be improved and mechanical strength can be enhanced.
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Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2020-193490 | Nov 2020 | JP | national |
This application claims priority to international application no. PCT/JP2021/040618, filed Nov. 4, 2021, which claims priority to Japanese application no. JP 2020-193490, filed Nov. 20, 2020. The entire contents of the prior applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/JP2021/040618 | Nov 2021 | US |
Child | 18319505 | US |