This invention relates to a MEMS device and a method for manufacturing the same and a diffraction-type MEMS device.
With the advancement of micro-fabrication technique, much attention has been focused on what is called a micro machine (MEMS: Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) device and a micro-sized device incorporated with a MEMS device.
The MEMS device is formed as a micro structure on a substrate such as silicon substrate, glass substrate or the like, in which a driving body outputting a mechanical driving force is electrically and further mechanically combined with a semiconductor integrated circuit or the like that controls the driving body. The fundamental characteristic of the MEMS device is that the driving body formed as a mechanical structure is incorporated in a part of the device and the driving body is electrically driven by a static electricity between electrodes, that is, an application of clone attraction or the like.
Conventionally, there have been developed optical MEMS devices that are applied to an optical switch, light modulation device or the like, by making use of light reflection or light diffraction.
Further, an optical MEMS device using reflected light can be applied as an optical switch having a switch function of detecting light reflected in one direction by making use of the fact that light incident on the surface of a beam reflects in different directions depending on positions where the beam are driven. Further, the optical MEMS device can be applied as a light modulation device for modulating the intensity of light. When using the light reflection, the intensity of light is modulated with the amount of reflected light in one direction per unit time by making a beam vibrate. This light modulation device is of what is called time modulation. Meanwhile, it is possible to modulate the intensity of light by using light diffraction. A light modulation device using light diffraction for modulating the intensity (diffraction intensity) of light reflected in the driving-side electrode is of what is called space modulation.
On the other hand, as an optical MEMS device applied to a light modulation device or the like, there has been proposed a diffraction-type MEMS device, that is, GLV (Grating Light Valve) device (refer to a Patent document 1).
The GLV device basically has such a configuration that a common substrate-side electrode is formed on a substrate, and a plurality of ribbon-shaped beams made of an insulation film and driving-side electrodes that also serve as a reflective film to cover the surface of the insulation film are formed through supports so as to be opposed to the substrate-side electrode with a space in between. With the GLV device, every other beam of the plurality of beams becomes a movable beam that approaches toward and departs from the substrate-side electrode by means of static electricity and the other beams become fixed beams. Then, every other beam out of six beams sinks to form a diffraction grating.
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Translation of PCT international application 2001-518198
Hereupon, such MEMS device can be manufactured by using a semiconductor process. With the MEMS device formed of a beam structure using the semiconductor process, the shape of the beam becomes an important factor in determining the characteristic of the MEMS device. However, as shown in
The reason for that is as follows: with the MEMS device, a thin film has been used for a semiconductor process to make the shape of the beam, however, at a time of manufacturing the beam by laminating thin films of plural kinds of materials, or in the case of the illustrated example, at a time of manufacturing the beam by using a two-layer film of the silicon nitride (SiN) film 7 and Al driving-side electrode 6, when being separated from the substrate 2, the beam 8 warps and is deformed in the width direction due to the difference of film stress between the materials, that is, between Sin film 7 and Al film 6. The warp of the beam 8 has, in many cases, unfavorable effects on the characteristics of the MEMS device, particularly, on reflection efficiency and diffraction efficiency, and to reduce the warp has become a crucial issue.
In the meantime, with a technology to solve the above problem of the warp, a film made of a material to counteract the stress may be added to the beam; however, there is a limit to materials that can be used in the semiconductor process, and further, when a film of a different material is added, there has been a problem such as degradation of the characteristics of the MEMS device.
The present invention provides a MEMS device in which a warp or deformation of a beam is reduced and characteristics are made to improve, a manufacturing method thereof and a diffraction-type MEMS device.
The MEMS device of the present invention includes a substrate-side electrode, a beam driven by static electricity generated between the substrate-side electrode and the beam, in which the beam is formed of a plurality of films including driving-side electrodes, and the beam is provided with deformation prevention means for preventing a deformation due to a warp caused by film stress.
The deformation prevention means is provided preferably in the vicinity of a light irradiated region of the beam and further, a plurality of the deformation prevention means are preferably provided with the light irradiated region in between. In the case of a both-end-supported beam structure, the deformation prevention means is preferably formed into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the direction connecting both the fixed ends of the beam; in the case of a cantilever beam structure, the deformation prevention means is preferably formed into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the direction connecting the fixed end of the beam and the free end that is opposed to the fixed end. In addition, the deformation prevention means are preferably formed into a projecting portion that projects toward the opposite surface side to become concave when seen from the light irradiated surface side of the beam.
In the MEMS device of the present invention, since the deformation prevention means is provided, the strength of the beam increases and the occurrences of the warp, that is, a deformation of the beam reduces.
The diffraction-type MEMS device of the present invention includes a common substrate-side electrode, a plurality of beams that are disposed in parallel independently to each other to be opposed to the common substrate-side electrode and are driven by static electricity generated between the common substrate-side electrode and the beam, in which the beam is formed of a plurality of films including driving-side electrodes and the beam is provided with deformation prevention means for preventing a deformation due to a warp caused by film stress.
Similarly to the above, the deformation prevention means are preferably disposed in the vicinity of the light irradiated region of the beams and a plurality of the deformation prevention means are preferably disposed with the light irradiated region in between. In the case of a both-end-supported beam structure, the deformation prevention means is preferably formed into an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the direction connecting both the fixed ends of the beam. In addition, the deformation prevention means is preferably formed into a projecting portion that projects toward the opposite surface side to become concave when seen from the light irradiated surface side of the beam.
In the diffraction-type MEMS device of the present invention, since the deformation prevention means is provided, the strength of the beam increases and the occurrences of the warp, that is, deformation of the beam reduces.
A method for manufacturing a MEMS device according to the present invention includes the steps of: forming a sacrifice layer on a substrate with a substrate-side electrode formed therein; boring an opening reaching down to the substrate at the position of the sacrifice layer where a support is to be formed; selectively removing the portions for forming deformation prevention means on the surface of said sacrifice layer; forming the support and a beam that are made of a plurality of thin films including a driving-side electrode on the surface of the sacrifice layer including the inner portions of the opening and the removed portions; and removing the sacrifice layer and forming the beam to integrate the support with deformation prevention means.
In the method for manufacturing the MEMS device of the present invention, since the portions on the surface of the sacrifice layer, where the deformation prevention means are to be formed, are selectively removed and the beam made of the plurality of thin films is formed including the removed portion, the beam integrated with the deformation prevention means are formed. Accordingly, the MEMS device provided with the beam not easily warped can be manufactured with ease and accuracy.
According to the MEMS device of the present invention, the warp that is deformation of the beam can be reduced and thereby the characteristics of the beam can be improved. A simulation based on the finite device method has confirmed that the warp in the beam can be reduced by 40% or more.
According to the diffraction-type MEMS device of the present invention, a warp, that is, deformation of each beam can be reduced while maintaining the tensile force of each beam and thereby optical characteristics can be improved. When providing the deformation prevention means in the vicinity of a light irradiated region of the beam, the planarity of the beams in the light irradiated region can be improved and further improvement of characteristics can be attained without incident light being interrupted by a projecting portion.
When the projecting portions are provided with a plurality of deformation prevention means with the light irradiated region in between, the warp in the light irradiated region of the beams can further be reduced.
In the case of the both-end-supported beam structure, the deformation prevention means is formed into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the direction connecting both fixed ends of the beam and so the strength in the width direction of the beams can be improved and a warp can be reduced. Since both the ends are fixed, the warp in the longitudinal direction can almost be negligible. In the case of the cantilever beam structure, the deformation prevention means is formed into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the direction connecting the fixed end of the beam and a free end opposing the fixed end, and so the strength in the width direction of the beams can be improved and a warp can be reduced.
By forming the deformation prevention means with the projecting portion that projects toward the opposite surface side into a concave shape when seen from the light irradiated region side, the warp in the beams can be reduced while maintaining the strength in the width direction thereof.
According to the method for manufacturing the MEMS device of the present invention, the above-mentioned MEMS device and diffraction-type MEMS device can be manufactured with ease and accuracy.
1 to 6C1 are manufacturing process diagrams (first part) showing an embodiment of the MEMS device of the present invention, and
1 to 7C1 are manufacturing process diagrams (second part) showing an embodiment of the MEMS device of the present invention, and
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to drawings.
Further, in this embodiment, there is provided deformation prevention means 31 in a part of the beam 27, for preventing a deformation or warp due to a stress of thin films constituting the beam 27. The deformation prevention means 31 can be formed of a projecting portion 32 that is projected such that part of the beam 27 is pushed out. In theory, the projecting portion 32 may be projected toward the side of the thin insulation film 28 or the side of the driving-side electrode 29. However, it is preferably projected toward the side of the thin insulation film 28. Specifically, the projecting portion 32 is formed such that the opposite surface side (that is, the thin insulation film 28 side) projects to become a concave-state when seen from the light irradiated side of the beam 27. The reason is that the planarity of the driving-side electrode 29 that also serves as a reflective film needs to be secured, as described later on (to be explained in the manufacturing process).
The projecting portion 32 that becomes the deformation prevention means 32 is disposed in the vicinity of the light irradiated region 33, as shown in
With the MEMS device 21 of this embodiment, by applying required voltage (electric signal) between the substrate-side electrode and driving-side electrode, as described above, static electricity occurs between both the electrodes 23, 29 and then, the beam 27 is driven (vibrates) to approach toward and depart from the substrate-side electrode 23 by on and off control. The MEMS device 21 is applied to a light modulation device, optical switch and the like in which modulation in reflected light, diffracted light, or reflection direction and the like of light incident on the beam 27 due to displacement of the beam 27 is used.
With respect to the results of calculation in a conventional example in
Next, a method for manufacturing the MEMS device 21 of the above-mentioned embodiment will be explained with reference to FIGS. 6 to 7. Hereupon,
First, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Next, as shown in
Next, as shown in
In the manufacturing method of this embodiment, when forming the projecting portions 32 in the process of FIGS. C1 and C2, parts of the surface of the sacrifice layer 35 are selectively removed to form the concave-shaped grooves 37 to be the projecting portions 32 that project toward the rear surface on the substrate side of the beam 27. Typically, an etched surface deteriorates with respect to planarity when compared with the surface that is deposited with the CVD (chemical vapor deposition) method or the like. Accordingly, the surface planarity of the silicon nitride film 28 and the Al film that becomes driving-side electrode 29 deposited on the surface of the sacrifice layer 35 by this method are improved, and the beam 27 with a reflective surface having excellent planarity can be formed.
According to the manufacturing method of this embodiment, the MEMS device 21 including the beam 27 that is resistant to deformation (warp) can be manufactured with ease and accuracy by using the semiconductor process.
According to the MEMS device 21 of this embodiment, by providing the projecting portions 32, that is, the deformation prevention means 31 in the beam 27, the strength of the beam 27 improves, thereby reducing the beam deformation, that is, making the beam 27 resistant to the warp. As a result, the optical characteristics of the MEMS can be improved, that is, become excellent. Simulation using the finite device method confirmed that the warp of the beam had been reduced by 40% or more. For example, it is confirmed that the warp had decreased from 15 nm to 6 nm.
Since the projecting portions 32 are provided in the vicinity of the light irradiated region 33 of the beam 27, the beam planarity in the light irradiated region 33 can be improved and since incident light is not interrupted by the projecting portions 32, further improvement of the characteristics thereof can be implemented. Particularly, when providing the two projecting portions 32 with the light irradiated region in between, the warp in the light irradiated region of the beam 27 can further be decreased.
In addition, by forming the projecting portions 32 into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the beam 27, the strength in the width direction of the beam can increase, thereby reducing the warp. In the case of the beam 27 with the above-mentioned both-end-supported beam structure, since the both ends are fixed, the warp in the longitudinal direction can almost be negligible. Since the projecting portions 32 are formed on the beam 27 within the width thereof, the tensile force of the beam 27 can be maintained.
The present invention can also be applied to the MEMS device with cantilever beam structure.
A MEMS device 39 according to this embodiment includes the substrate-side electrode 23 formed on the substrate 22, the insulation film 24 also serving as a protective film formed on the substrate-side electrode 23, and the beam 27 formed to be opposed to the substrate-side electrode 23 with the space 26 in between such that one end of the beam 27 is supported by the support 25. Similarly to the above-mentioned embodiment, the beam 27 is formed of a plurality of thin films of different materials including the driving-side electrode, in this case, a two-layer film structure including the silicon nitride film 28 and driving-side electrode 29 made of a thin metal film thereon. The driving-side electrode 29 also serves as the reflective film to reflect the incident light. The support 25 is formed of the two-layer film made of the thin insulation film 28 and metal thin film 29 as is the beam 27. Further, two projecting portions 32 that serve as the deformation prevention means 31 are provided in parts of the beam 27. These projecting portions 32 are formed into an elongated shape in the direction perpendicular to the direction connecting the fixed end of the beam 27 and the free end that is opposed to the fixed end. Since the other structures are the same as those in
In the MEMS device 39 according to this embodiment, similarly to the above embodiment, the strength in the width direction of the beam 27 also increases, the warp in the width direction of the beam 27 can be reduced, and optical characteristics thereof can be improved.
In the above-mentioned embodiments, the film structure of the beam 27 was configured to have two-layers including the silicon nitride film 28 and driving-side electrode 29. Other than that, the present invention can be applied to a beam of laminated films, that is, having two films or more.
A GLV device 41 of this embodiment includes a common substrate-side electrode 43, with its surface covered with an insulation film 44, formed on a substrate 42, and a plurality of, in this case six ribbon-shaped, beams 27 [271, 272, 273, 274, 275, 276] of a two-layer structure made of an insulation film, in this case, of a silicon nitride (SiN) film 48 and driving-side electrode 49 made of metal thin film, formed through supports 45 [45A, 45B] to be opposed to the substrate-side electrode 43, with a space in between. Further, in this embodiment, particularly the same projecting portions 32 as
In the GLV device 41, every other beams 271, 273, 275 among a plurality of the beams 27 serve as movable beams that approach toward and depart from the substrate-side electrode 43 by means of a static electricity and the other beams 272, 274, 276 serve as fixed beams.
In the GLV device 41, the difference between the phase of light reflecting on the surface of the movable beams 271, 273, 275 and that of light reflecting on the fixed beams 272, 274, 276 can be controlled digitally to be 0 or λ/4 or can be controlled in analog manner in the range of 0 to λ/4. For example, when the six beams 27 [271 to 276] form the same planar surface, reflected light on the surface of the beam 27 is a zero-order light. On the other hand, as shown in
In the case of the GLV device 41 of this embodiment, since the projecting portions 32 are provided in the respective beams 27 similarly to the above mentioned embodiments, the strength of the beam 27 increases, which reduces the warp, that is, the deformation of the beam 27 while maintaining the tensile force and to further improve the optical characteristic of the GLV device 41.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2003-38696 | Feb 2003 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/JP04/01302 | 2/6/2004 | WO | 4/4/2006 |