MEMS reliability: coming of age

In today's high-volume semiconductor world, one could easily take reliability for granted. As the MOEMS/MEMS industry continues to establish itself as a viable alternative to conventional manufacturing in the macro world, reliability can be of high concern. Currently, there are several emerging market opportunities in which MOEMS/MEMS is gaining a foothold. Markets such as mobile media, consumer electronics, biomedical devices, and homeland security are all showing great interest in microfabricated products. At the same time, these markets are among the most demanding when it comes to reliability assurance. To be successful, each company developing a MOEMS/MEMS device must consider reliability on an equal footing with cost, performance and manufacturability. What can this maturing industry learn from the successful development of DLP technology, air bag accelerometers and inkjet printheads? This paper discusses some basic reliability principles which any MOEMS/MEMS device development must use. Examples from the commercially successful and highly reliable Digital Micromirror Device complement the discussion.