ABSTRACT
A micromachined Silicon lid, sealed by CuSn solid liquid interdiffusion bonding is a promising approach for hermetic sealing of microbolometers for use in low-cost thermal cameras. However, since â¼30% of long-wave infrared light is reflected at an uncoated single Si-air interface, anti-reflective treatments are required. Traditional anti-reflective coatings are inapplicable since CuSn solid liquid interdiffusion bonding requires heating to about 270 °C and these multi-layer coatings fail due to differing coefficients of thermal expansion for the different layers and the substrate. For this purpose, an anti-reflective coating that maintains its anti-reflective properties after being heat-cycled to 300 °C has been developed. This coating was developed using a simple 2-layer structure composed of ZnS and YF3 and deposited at 100 °C. The development process that led to the successful coating has also been described in this paper. The final sample shows a 30% average increase in transmission in the 8-12 µm wavelength range as compared to an uncoated wafer.
ABSTRACT
In this article, we present our research achievements regarding the development of a remote sensing system for motor pulse acquisition, as a first step towards a complete neuroprosthetic arm. We present the fabrication process of an implantable electrode for nerve impulse acquisition, together with an innovative wirelessly controlled system. In our study, these were combined into an implantable device for attachment to peripheral nerves. Mechanical and biocompatibility tests were performed, as well as in vivo testing on pigs using the developed system. This testing and the experimental results are presented in a comprehensive manner, demonstrating that the system is capable of accomplishing the requirements of its designed application. Most significantly, neural electrical signals were acquired and transmitted out of the body during animal experiments, which were conducted according to ethical regulations in the field.
Subject(s)
Peripheral Nervous System , Remote Sensing Technology , Action Potentials , Animals , Electrodes, Implanted , Peripheral Nerves/physiology , SwineABSTRACT
We performed a systematic study involving simulation and experimental techniques to develop induced-junction silicon photodetectors passivated with thermally grown SiO2 and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited (PECVD) SiNx thin films that show a record high quantum efficiency. We investigated PECVD SiNx passivation and optimized the film deposition conditions to minimize the recombination losses at the silicon-dielectric interface as well as optical losses. Depositions with varied process parameters were carried out on test samples, followed by measurements of minority carrier lifetime, fixed charge density, and optical absorbance and reflectance. Subsequently, the surface recombination velocity, which is the limiting factor for internal quantum deficiency (IQD), was obtained for different film depositions via 2D simulations where the measured effective lifetime, fixed charge density, and substrate parameters were used as input. The quantum deficiency of induced-junction photodiodes that would be fabricated with a surface passivation of given characteristics was then estimated using improved 3D simulation models. A batch of induced-junction photodiodes was fabricated based on the passivation optimizations performed on test samples and predictions of simulations. Photodiodes passivated with PECVD SiNx film as well as with a stack of thermally grown SiO2 and PECVD SiNx films were fabricated. The photodiodes were assembled as light-trap detector with 7-reflections and their efficiency was tested with respect to a reference Predictable Quantum Efficient Detector (PQED) of known external quantum deficiency. The preliminary measurement results show that PQEDs based on our improved photodiodes passivated with stack of SiO2/SiNx have negligible quantum deficiencies with IQDs down to 1 ppm within 30 ppm measurement uncertainty.
