The present disclosure relates to a CUT transducer (200) comprising: —a conductive or semiconductor substrate (201) coated with a stack of one or a plurality of dielectric layers (203, 213); —a cavity (205, 215) formed in said stack; —a conductive or semiconductor membrane (221) suspended above the cavity; —at the bottom of the cavity, a conductive region (209) in contact with the upper surface of the substrate, said conductive region being interrupted on a portion of the upper surface of the substrate; and—in the cavity, a stop structure (207) made of a dielectric material localized on or above the area of interruption of the conductive region (209).

A microelectromechanical system device includes a substrate, a dielectric layer, an electrode, a surface modification layer and a membrane. The dielectric layer is formed on the substrate, and is formed with a cavity that is defined by a cavity-defining wall. The electrode is formed in the dielectric layer. The surface modification layer covers the cavity-defining wall, and has a plurality of hydrophobic end groups. The membrane is connected to the dielectric layer, and seals the cavity. The membrane is movable toward or away from the electrode. A method for making a microelectromechanical system device is also provided.

A method for detecting orientation of an integrated circuit is disclosed. The method includes moving, in response to a gravitational force, a mobile metallic piece in an evolution zone of a housing. The housing is formed in an interconnect region of the integrated circuit. The housing includes walls defining the evolution zone. The walls are formed within multiple metallization levels of the interconnect region. The walls include a floor wall and a ceiling wall. At least one of the floor wall and ceiling wall incorporate a pointed element directing its pointed region towards the mobile metallic piece. The pointed element delimits an open crater in a concave part of a projection. The method further includes creating an electrical signal by movement of the mobile metallic piece at a plurality of electrically conducting elements positioned at boundary points of the evolution zone and detecting the electrical signal by a detector.

Systems and Apparatus for micromirror designs with electrode contact. In some examples, a micromirror including a mirror, a mirror via coupled to the mirror, a hinge coupled to the mirror via, the hinge including a springtip associated with a first side of the micromirror, the springtip associated with a first terminal, and an electrode associated with the first side of the micromirror, the electrode having a dielectric coating in contact with the springtip, the electrode associated with a second terminal different than the first terminal.

Methods and systems for reducing stiction through roughening the surface and reducing the contact area in MEMS devices are disclosed. A method includes fabricating bumpstops on a surface of a MEMS device substrate to reduce stiction. Another method is directed to applying roughening etchant to a surface of a silicon substrate to enhance roughness after cavity etch and before removal of hardmask. Another embodiment described herein is directed to a method to reduce contact area between proof mass and UCAV (“upper cavity”) substrate surface with minimal impact on the cavity volume by introducing a shallow etch process step and maintaining high pressure in accelerometer cavity. Another method is described as to increasing the surface roughness of a UCAV substrate surface by depositing a rough layer (e.g. polysilicon) on the surface of the substrate and etching back the rough layer to transfer the roughness.

A micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) microphone is provided. The MEMS microphone includes a substrate, a diaphragm, a backplate and a first protrusion. The substrate has an opening portion. The diaphragm is disposed on one side of the substrate and extends across the opening portion of the substrate. The backplate includes a plurality of acoustic holes. The backplate is disposed on one side of the diaphragm. An air gap is formed between the backplate and the diaphragm. The first protrusion extends from the backplate towards the air gap.

A micro electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) device includes a flexible membrane disposed over a substrate, and a first backplate disposed over the flexible membrane. The first backplate includes a first plurality of bumps facing the flexible membrane. The MEMS device further includes a plurality of features disposed at the flexible membrane, where each of the plurality of features being associated with a corresponding one of the first plurality of bumps.

A device includes a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) device layer comprising a proof mass. The proof mass includes a first proof mass portion and a second proof mass portion. The first proof mass portion is configured to move in response to a stimuli. The second proof mass portion has a spring attached thereto. The device further includes a substrate disposed parallel to the MEMS device layer. The substrate comprises a bumpstop configured to limit motion of the first proof mass portion. The device includes a first electrode disposed on the substrate facing the second proof mass portion. The first electrode is configured to apply a pulling force onto the second proof mass portion and to move the second proof mass portion towards the first electrode.

A physical quantity sensor includes, when three directions orthogonal to one another are defined as a first direction, a second direction, and a third direction, a substrate; and a moving member facing the substrate in the third direction via a gap and becoming displaced in the third direction in relation to the substrate. The moving member has a first region that has a plurality of penetration holes penetrating the moving member in the third direction and having a square opening shape as viewed from the third direction, and a second region having no penetration hole. At least one of a length in the first direction and a length in the second direction of the second region is equal to or greater than S0+2×S1, where S0 is a length of one side of the penetration hole, and S1 is a space between the penetration holes next to each other.

A micro-electromechanical-system (MEMS) device may be formed to include an anti-stiction polysilicon layer on one or more moveable MEMS structures of a device wafer of the MEMS device to reduce, minimize, and/or eliminate stiction between the moveable MEMS structures and other components or structures of the MEMS device. The anti-stiction polysilicon layer may be formed such that a surface roughness of the anti-stiction polysilicon layer is greater than the surface roughness of a bonding polysilicon layer on the surfaces of the device wafer that are to be bonded to a circuitry wafer of the MEMS device. The higher surface roughness of the anti-stiction polysilicon layer may reduce the surface area of the bottom of the moveable MEMS structures, which may reduce the likelihood that the one or more moveable MEMS structures will become stuck to the other components or structures.