Hermetically-sealed sensor with a movable microstructure
DC
First Claim
1. A sensor with a movable microstructure, comprising a sensitive element formed in a first chip of semiconductor material for producing an electrical signal dependent on a movement of at least one movable microstructure relative to a surface of the first chip, the sensitive element being enclosed in a hollow hermetic structure formed by a second chip of semiconductor material attached to the first chip of semiconductor material over the sensitive element, and a processing circuit for processing said electrical signal formed in the second chip of semiconductor material and in electrical connection with the electrical signal produced by the sensitive element formed in the first chip, the hollow hermetic structure including a metal wall disposed on a surface of the first chip around the sensitive element, the second chip being fixed to said wall.
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Abstract
A sensor with a movable microstructure including a sensitive element, formed in a first chip of semiconductor material for producing an electrical signal dependent on a movement of at least one movable microstructure relative to a surface of the first chip. The sensitive element is enclosed in a hollow hermetic structure, and circuitry for processing the electrical signal is formed in a second chip of semiconductor material. The hollow hermetic structure includes a metal wall disposed on the surface of the first chip around the sensitive element, and the second chip is fixed to the metal wall.
105 Citations
15 Claims
- 1. A sensor with a movable microstructure, comprising a sensitive element formed in a first chip of semiconductor material for producing an electrical signal dependent on a movement of at least one movable microstructure relative to a surface of the first chip, the sensitive element being enclosed in a hollow hermetic structure formed by a second chip of semiconductor material attached to the first chip of semiconductor material over the sensitive element, and a processing circuit for processing said electrical signal formed in the second chip of semiconductor material and in electrical connection with the electrical signal produced by the sensitive element formed in the first chip, the hollow hermetic structure including a metal wall disposed on a surface of the first chip around the sensitive element, the second chip being fixed to said wall.
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8. A sensor comprising:
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a first chip of semiconductor material;
a sensor element having a movable microstructure, the sensor element supported by the first chip and structured to generate a first signal in response to a movement of the microstructure relative to the first chip;
a second chip of semiconductor material covering the sensor element and configured to receive the first signal, the second chip of semiconductor material comprising a processing circuit formed therein and electrically coupled to the sensor element to receive the first signal, the processing circuit structured to process the first signal and generate a second signal based on the first signal; and
a wall formed on the first chip and surrounding the sensor element and connecting the first chip to the second chip, the wall defining a hermetically scaled chamber between the first chip and the second chip and enclosing the sensor element. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
a plurality of conductive pads connected between the first chip and the second chip; and
a low resistance diffusion in the first chip between the sensor element and the pads.
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12. The sensor according to claim 11, further comprising at least one output terminal outside the sealed chamber and coupled to the processing circuit to receive the second signal.
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13. The sensor according to claim 8 wherein the sensor element comprises an inertial sensor.
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14. The sensor according to claim 8 wherein the sensor clement comprises a resonant sensor.
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15. The sensor according to claim 8 wherein the sealed chamber encloses a gas at a pressure below atmospheric pressure.
Specification
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- Resources
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Current AssigneeSTMicroelectronics Incorporated (STMicroelectronics NV)
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Original AssigneeSTMicroelectronics SRL (STMicroelectronics NV)
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InventorsMurari, Bruno, Ferrari, Paolo, Vigna, Benedetto
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Primary Examiner(s)KWOK, HELEN C
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Application NumberUS09/100,838Time in Patent Office1,460 DaysField of Search734/93, 735/143.2, 735/141.6, 735/142.9, 734/31, 737/18, 737/19, 737/20, 737/21, 737/24, 737/56, 737/54, 257/417, 257/415US Class Current73/493CPC Class CodesB81C 1/0023 Packaging together an elect...G01P 1/02 HousingsG01P 15/0802 Details
