MEMS reliability

Summary form only given. The main thrust in any reliability work is identifying for the new technology of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). This tutorial includes a brief review of MEMS fabrication methods and identifies some commercial products. We describe some of the methods developed to measure materials parameters and surface properties to characterize MEMS devices. Our reliability methodology employs statistical characterization and testing to help us identify dominant failure modes. We strive to determine the root cause of each failure mode and to gain a fundamental (science-based) understanding of that mechanism. The development of predictive models follows from this science-based understanding. A reliability model for wear in a MEMS application with contacting surfaces was presented.