The methodology suggested in this research provides the great possibility of creating nanostructures composed of various materials, such as soft polymer, hard polymer, and metal, as well as Si. Such nanostructures are required for a vast range of optical and display devices, photonic components, physical devices, energy devices including electrodes of secondary batteries, fuel cells, solar cells, and energy harvesters, biological devices including biochips, biomimetic or biosimilar structured devices, and mechanical devices including micro- or nano-scale sensors and actuators.
The methodology suggested in this research provides the great possibility of creating nanostructures composed of
various materials, such as soft polymer, hard polymer, and metal, as well as Si. Such nanostructures are required for a
vast range of optical and display devices, photonic components, physical devices, energy devices including electrodes of
secondary batteries, fuel cells, solar cells, and energy harvesters, biological devices including biochips, biomimetic or
biosimilar structured devices, and mechanical devices including micro- or nano-scale sensors and actuators.
For the development of small and low cost microbolometer, wafer level reliability characterization techniques of vacuum
packaged wafer are introduced. Amorphous silicon based microbolometer-type vacuum sensors fabricated in 8 inch
wafer are bonded with cap wafer by Au-Sn eutectic solder. Membrane deflection and integrated vacuum sensor
techniques are independently used to characterize the hermeticity in a wafer-level. For the packaged wafer with
membrane thickness below 100um, it is possible to determine the hermeticity as screening test by optical detection
technique. Integrated vacuum sensor having the same structure as bolometer pixel shows the vacuum level below
100mTorr. All steps from packaging process to fine hermeticity test are implemented in wafer level to prove the high
volume and low cost production.
We investigated silicon as a promising material for a IR transparent window platform of IR(Infrared Ray) sensors with
WLP(wafer level package), because silicon has advantages in price and CMOS process compatibility compared to Ge
window although Ge exhibits higher IR transmittance than Si. Having comparable transmittance to Ge is the key to use
silicon as a IR transparent window platform. We compared several types of AR coating films, SiN, SiO2, only ZnS, and
Ge/ZnS for finding the condition of maximizing transmittance of Si in the range of 8 ~12 um , LW-IR(Longwave IR).
Also we investigated changing of transmittance for LW-IR after thermal treatments in several ambient gases and several
temperatures.
Silicon is a promising material as an IR(Infrared Ray) transparent window platform for packaging MEMS( microelectro
mechanical systems), especially, IR sensors with WLP(wafer level package), because silicon has advantages in price and
CMOS process compatibility compared to Ge, although Ge exhibits higher IR transmittance than Si. This paper reports
on optimizing the thickness of Si window in the range of 8 ~ 12 um, LW-IR(Long wave IR). Two of important things
which have to be considered in window material of IR sensor are minimizing absorption of IR(maximizing transmittance)
and minimizing deformation due to the pressure differences between outside and inside of the package.
Because of trade-off between minimizing IR absorption and minimizing mechanical deformation, optimization of
thickness is important. Infrared absorbance of silicon was measured as varying thickness from 100 um to 700 um of the
Si window. Decreasing the thickness of silicon made the absorption smaller. Under 300 um, the difference of absorbance
with decreasing thickness becomes negligible. Degree of deformation according to the thickness of the Si window was
calculated by simulation varying pressure differences, and package area. Based on this analysis, we suggest the
optimized thickness of silicon window for WLP of LW-IR sensor.
For the development of small microbolometer for mobile applications, new pixel design to enhance fill factor by sharedanchor
structures is suggested and it can be possible to make a one anchor per unit pixel. Fill factor increases 10% more
than that of normal unshared-anchor design. Amorphous-silicon based microbolometer has been fabricated with 64x64
arrays of 25um pixel size to verify proposed design. Mechanical flatness of shared-anchor structure is enhanced.
Responsivity is enhanced from 1.08e+5 V/W to 1.23e+5 V/W due to the increase of fill-factor compared to unsharedanchor.
There are no mechanical, electrical and thermal crosstalk problems with adjacent pixels.
Diffractive spatial optical modulators (SOM) employing a fine-pitch pixel array were introduced. The micromechanical designs of the lead zirconate titanate (PZT) actuator and mirror ribbon structure were optimized for a small volume while maintaining the same level of performance. The same design rule and fabrication equipment were used for a new 10-µm-pitch and conventional 16-µm-pitch SOM. The optical efficiency of the new SOM was 78% (zeroth-order diffraction), which is an improvement over that of the 16-µm-pitch SOM (73%). The full on/off contrast ratio showed no differences, and a high displacement of 500 nm was achieved. The stress of the Pt/PZT/Pt actuating layer was the main parameter affecting the initial gap height and displacement of the ribbon. The required ribbon flatness could be achieved by applying a stress gradient on the SiN layer. The temperature-sensitive characteristics, which degrade image quality, could be minimized by a mechanical compensation method that takes advantage of the thermal expansion effect of Si substrates. The estimated lifetime of the device is >4000 h. The developed fine-pitch SOM device has sufficient response time and ribbon displacement to be suitable for high-quality embedded laser-projection displays. The VGA optical module was successfully demonstrated in a mobile laser projection display.
Diffractive spatial optical modulators (SOM) with fine pitch pixel array were introduced for the mobile applications of
laser projection display which requires the small volume, low power consumption and high optical efficiency.
Micromechanical designs of piezoelectric (PZT) actuator and mirror ribbon structure were optimized for small volume,
but keeping the same level of the other performance. Even though the same design rule and fabrication equipment were
used for 10 um pitch SOM and 16 um pitch SOM, the optical efficiency of the fine pitch SOM was 78 % for the 0th order
diffraction and is better than that of 16 um pitch SOM (73%). The full on/off contrast ratio has no difference between 10
um pitch and 16 um pitch SOM. All the optical characteristics coincide well with the theoretical estimations. High
displacement of 500nm, which is enough to modulate the three Red, Green and Blue colors were achieved by the control
of the thicknesses and stresses of constituent structural layers. It was found that the stress of Pt/PZT/Pt actuating layer
was the main parameter affecting the initial gap height of the ribbon and also its displacement. For improving the optical
properties of the SOM devices, the required ribbon-flatness could be achieved by applying a stress gradient on the SiN
layer to compensate for the stress unbalance between Al mirror and SiN supprting layer. The temperature sensitive
characteristics of the SOM device, which degrades the image quality, could be minimized by a mechanical compensation
method using a thermal expansion effect of Si substrates. This concept could be applied in most of the bridge type
MEMS structure. The most critical parameter which limit the SOM device lifetime was found to be the ribbon
displacement degradation. By using a temperature accelerating lifetime measurement method based on the displacement
degradation the estimated lifetime was more than 4,000 hrs and is of acceptable level in the mobile application. In short,
the developed fine pitch SOM device, for making small volume of optical module, has sufficient response time and
ribbon displacement for modulating the red, blue and green colors with one SOM chip and is suitable for high quality
embedded laser projection displays. Optical module with VGA is successfully demonstrated for its potential applications
in mobile laser projection display such as a embed projection cellular phone.
A diffractive optical modulator has been fabricated based on a micromachining process. Novel
properties of its fast response time and dynamics were fully understood and demonstrated for the
strong potentials in embedded mobile laser display. Bridged thin film piezo-actuators with so called
open mirror diffraction structure has been designed. Optical level package also was achieved to
successfully prove its display application qualities. Display circuits and driving logic were developed
to finally confirm the single-panel laser display at a 240Hz VGA (640×480). With its efficiency of
more than 75% and 13cc volume optical engine with the MEMS-based VGA resolution SOM
showed 7 lm brightness at a 1.5W electrical power consumption. Detailed design principle,
fabrication, packaging and performances of the invented SOM are described.
A new type of diffractive spatial optical modulators, named SOM, has been developed by Samsung Electro-Mechanics
for laser projection display. It exhibit inherent advantages of fast response time and high-performance light modulation,
suitable for high quality embedded laser projection displays. The calculated efficiency and contrast ratio are 75 % and
800:1 respectively in case of 0th order, 67 % and 1000:1 respectively in case of ±1st order. The response time is as fast as
0.7 &mgr;s. Also we get the displacement of 400 nm enough to display full color with single panel in VGA format, as being
10 V driven. Optical module with VGA was successfully demonstrated for its potential applications in mobile laser
projection display such as cellular phone, digital still camera and note PC product. Electrical power consumption is less
than 2 W, volume is less than 13 cc. Brightness is enough to watch TV and movie in the open air, being variable up to 6
lm. Even if it's optimal diagonal image size is 10 inch, image quality does not deteriorate in the range of 5 to 50 inch
because of the merit of focus-free. Due to 100 % fill factor, the image is seamless so as to be unpleasant to see the every
pixel's partition. High speed of response time can make full color display with 24-bit gray scale and cause no scan line
artifact, better than any other devices.
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