Slobodan Petrovic

Characterization of highly hydrophobic coatings deposited onto pre-oxidized silicon from water dispersible organosilanes

The formation and quality of highly hydrophobic coatings deposited from water dispersible organosilanes onto pre-oxidized single crystal silicon were studied using atomic force microscopy, ellipsometry, dynamic contact angle measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Highly hydrophobic films of a commercially available water dispersible silane and two different cationic alkoxysilanes were prepared by dip coating. It was found using atomic force microscopy that, in general, the structure of these highly hydrophobic films is a continuous film with some particulates attributed to bulk polymerization of the precursor molecule in water. Film defects were quantified using EIS by the value of charge transfer resistance at the hydrofluoric acid/silicon interface. Potential applications of this type of coatings include reduction/elimination of stiction in micro-electromechanical systems, contact printing in materials microfabrication, inhibition of corrosion and oxidation, prevention of water wetting, lubrication and protein adsorption.

Reliability test methods for media-compatible pressure sensors

Two applications of media exposure testing of pressure sensors with barrier coatings are presented. Experimentation was performed on an apparatus that was developed specifically for the exposure of these devices with in situ output voltage measurement in organic or aqueous environments. The first example illustrates the swelling of fluorosilicone gels in fuels and establishes a solubility parameter for one fluorosilicone gel between 6-8 (cal/cm/sup 3/)/sup 1/2/. While exposure to organic solutions has not been observed to cause catastrophic failure of fluorosilicone-gel-filled devices, corrosion is accelerated in subsequent aqueous solution exposure. An additional experiment was used to simulate automotive exhaust gases and water by exposing devices to a fuel mixture followed by an acidic solution. The second experiment was performed to study corrosion under parylene coatings during exposure to an alkaline test solution for white-goods applications. Acceleration factor expressions have been estimated considering parylene coating thickness, solution pH, and applied device supply voltage as acceleration means. These expressions have been used to evaluate parylene-coated pressure sensors against a benchmark lifetime requirement. For a 1% failure rate, parylene-coated pressure sensors survived approximately 500 h, whereas an alternative, fluorosilicone gel over parylene C coating survived over 2000 h. Furthermore, these media exposure experiments provided insight into the failure mechanisms and defined acceleration factors.

Analytical techniques for examining reliability and failure mechanisms of barrier-coated encapsulated silicon pressure sensors exposed to harsh media

Low-cost, silicon piezoresistive pressure sensors need to be compatible with a variety of chemical environments to provide pressure and liquid level sensing products for various automotive, industrial, and consumer white goods applications. Previous work has identified that the typical failure mechanism for a barrier coated device involves the delamination of the coating from the substrate followed by corrosion of exposed metal areas. This work introduces the application of known electrochemical techniques for the development of accelerated experimental test procedures for sensor exposure to harsh environments. Qualitative correlation of these results with predicted reliability lifetimes, estimated statistically from media exposure testing, is shown. Several methods are presented for assessing the quality of barrier coatings. These techniques can be used both to identify specific corrosive failure mechanisms as they are occurring during media exposure, and to make relative predictions about the reliability lifetime of barrier coated and encapsulated devices. One demonstrated method is the simple measurement of open circuit (non-biased) potential. This is envisaged to show a mixed potential between all anodic and cathodic reactions, while taking into account the resistance of the coating. The fluctuations in mean potential with time depend on variations in the activities of different sensor regions and on underfilm passivation. The standard deviation of voltage noise can be used as an indication of the quality of the coatings. The critical factor in these measurements and sensor encapsulation in general is understanding reactant diffusion through a barrier coating. In addition, polarization measurements were used to examine the rate of media diffusion through the coating and to determine the reaction mechanism.

Selective Encapsulation Using a Polymeric or Bonded Silicon Constraint Dam for Media Compatible Pressure Sensor Applications

Two approaches were investigated to provide selective encapsulation for surface-micromachined pressure sensor devices. The techniques provide a means for allowing packaging encapsulant to be dispensed over the critical corrosion-susceptible areas of a pressure sensor device: the bondpad and wirebonds, without encroaching on the pressure sensor diaphragm (i.e., a “dam”). This is critical for applications where the pressure sensor, with the increased mass of the encapsulant, is exposed to an acceleration that causes a significant cross-sensitivity. The first method uses a glass-frit-bonded bulk micromachined silicon cap wafer, and the second method uses a patterned polymeric gel-like material in the assembly area to create this dam. Both methods have passed exposure testing to harsh chemical environments, including nitric acid and salt water, at elevated temperature.