Magnetically actuated microshutter arrays

David Brent Mott; Shahid Aslam; Kenneth A. Blumenstock; Rainer K. Fettig; David E. Franz; Alexander S. Kutyrev; Mary J. Li; Carlos J. Monroy; Samuel Harvey Moseley Jr.; David Scott Schwinger

doi:10.1117/12.443109

2 October 2001 Magnetically actuated microshutter arrays

David Brent Mott, Shahid Aslam, Kenneth A. Blumenstock, Rainer K. Fettig, David E. Franz, Alexander S. Kutyrev, Mary J. Li, Carlos J. Monroy, Samuel Harvey Moseley Jr., David Scott Schwinger

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 4561, MOEMS and Miniaturized Systems II; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.443109
Event: Micromachining and Microfabrication, 2001, San Francisco, CA, United States

Abstract

Two-dimensional microshutter arrays are being developed at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) for the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) for use in the near-infrared region. Functioning as focal plane object selection devices, the microshutter arrays are 2-D programmable masks with high efficiency and high contrast. The NGST environment requires cryogenic operation at 45 K. Arrays are close-packed silicon nitride membranes with a unit cell size of 100x100 micrometer. Individual shutters are patterned with a torsion flexure permitting shutters to open 90 degrees with minimized mechanical stress concentration. The mechanical shutter arrays are fabricated with MEMS technologies. The processing includes a RIE front-etch to form shutters out of the nitride membrane, an anisotropic back-etch for wafer thinning, and a deep RIE (DRIE) back-etch down to the nitride shutter membrane to form frames and to relieve the shutters from the silicon substrate. A layer of magnetic material is deposited onto each shutter. Onto the side-wall of the support structure a metal layer is deposited that acts as a vertical hold electrode. Shutters are rotated into the support structure by means of an external magnet that is swept across the shutter array for opening. Addressing is performed through a scheme using row and column address lines on each chip and external addressing electronics.

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David Brent Mott, Shahid Aslam, Kenneth A. Blumenstock, Rainer K. Fettig, David E. Franz, Alexander S. Kutyrev, Mary J. Li, Carlos J. Monroy, Samuel Harvey Moseley Jr., and David Scott Schwinger "Magnetically actuated microshutter arrays", Proc. SPIE 4561, MOEMS and Miniaturized Systems II, (2 October 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.443109

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