CAPACITIVE MICROMACHINED ULTRASOUND TRANSDUCER AND METHODS OF MAKING THE SAME

• Main Authors: SMITH LOWELL SCOTT, FISHER RAYETTE A, CHU STANLEY CHIENWU, TIAN WEING, WEI CHING-YEU, MILLS DAVID M, KWON HYON-JIN, WODNICKI ROBERT G
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 23.08.2007
• Subjects: ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES; DEAF-AID SETS; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; DIAGNOSIS; ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE; ELECTRICITY; HUMAN NECESSITIES; HYGIENE; IDENTIFICATION; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION ORRERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKEACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; MEASURING; MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; MICROSTRUCTURAL DEVICES OR SYSTEMS, e.g. MICROMECHANICALDEVICES; MICROSTRUCTURAL TECHNOLOGY; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICS; PROCESSES OR APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTUREOR TREATMENT OF MICROSTRUCTURAL DEVICES OR SYSTEMS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS; RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; SURGERY; TESTING; TRANSPORTING

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of making a cMUT cell capable of obtaining flexibility in design and the reduction of manufacturing cost. SOLUTION: A method of making a capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducer cell is provided. The method includes providing a carrier substrate (10), where the carrier substrate comprises glass. The step of providing the glass substrate may include forming vias (171) in the glass substrate. Further, the method includes a membrane providing step of providing a membrane (14) so that at least one of the carrier substrate (10), or the membrane (14) comprises support posts (12), where the support posts are configured to define a cavity depth. COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT