Fabrication and testing of metal micromechanisms with rotational and translational motion

Microactuators ideally produce large output forces per unit chip area. This requires processing procedures which lend themselves to structures with large structural heights. Processing which also produces large edge acuities is required for low friction, low wear sliding bearing surfaces. Both attributes are accommodated in a processing sequence which uses thick photoresist technology, X-ray exposure, and metal plating together with a surface micromachined sacrificial layer. The end results are thick precision metal structures which can be assembled to achieve submicron tolerances in sliding bearing surfaces. The process has been used to fabricate rotational planar magnetic micromotors with low friction. Linear reluctance drives with spring returns have also been achieved and are in the testing phase.