Crack growth phenomena in micro-machined single crystal silicon and design implications for micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS)

The creation of micron-sized mechanisms using semiconductor processing technology is known collectively as MEMS, or Micro Electro Mechanical Systems. Many MEMS devices, such as accelerometers and switches, have mechanical structures fabricated from single crystal silicon, a brittle material. The reliability and longevity of these devices depends on minimizing the probability of fracture, and therefore requires a thorough understanding of crack growth phenomena in silicon.; In this study, a special micro-machined fracture specimen, the compression-loaded double cantilever beam, was developed to study fracture phenomena in single crystal silicon on a size scale relevant to MEMS. The decreasing stress intensity geometry of this sample provided stable, controllable crack propagation in test sections as thin as 100 mum. Several common MEMS fabrication methods (plasma and chemical etch) were used to achieve a range of surface finishes. A 650 A thick titanium crack gage was used to directly measure crack extension as a function of time using the potential drop technique. High speed (100 MHz) data acquisition techniques were employed to capture fracture events on the sub-microsecond time scale.; The stability of the sample design and the micron-scale resolution of the crack gage facilitated investigation into the existence of a stress corrosion effect in silicon. No evidence of sub-critical crack growth due to exposure to humid air was found in carefully controlled tests lasting up to 24 hours.; Rapid crack propagation velocities (>1 km/s) during quasi-static loading were recorded using high speed data acquisition techniques. Unique evidence was found of reflected stress waves causing multiple, momentary arrests during rapid fracture events. These measurements, along with atomic force microscope scans of the fracture surfaces, offer new insight into the kinetics of the fracture process in silicon.; Over 100 micro-machined samples were fractured in this research. Weibull analysis was employed to characterize, in a broadly applicable manner, the failure probability of samples as a function of surface preparation and applied stress intensity. A design study of an existing MEMS device is presented in order to demonstrate the utility of the data gathered during this research for predicting the failure of silicon MEMS devices.