A microscale device comprises a patterned forest of vertically grown and aligned carbon nanotubes defining a carbon nanotube forest with the nanotubes having a height defining a thickness of the forest, the patterned forest defining a patterned frame that defines one or more components of a microscale device. A conformal coating of substantially uniform thickness at least partially coats the nanotubes, defining coated nanotubes and connecting adjacent nanotubes together, without substantially filling interstices between individual coated nanotubes. A metallic interstitial material infiltrates the carbon nanotube forest and at least partially fills interstices between individual coated nanotubes.

According to one embodiment, a method of manufacturing a device is provided. A amorphous metal layer is formed. A metal layer containing metal and having a crystal plane oriented to a predetermined plane is formed on the amorphous metal layer. A first layer containing semiconductor including silicon, and metal identical to the metal contained in the metal layer is formed on the metal layer. The first layer is changed to a second layer containing a compound of the semiconductor and the metal, the compound having a crystal plane oriented to the predetermined plane. A third layer containing polycrystalline silicon-germanium and having a crystal plane oriented to the predetermined plane is formed on the second layer.

Described herein is a ruggedized microelectromechanical (“MEMS”) force sensor including both piezoresistive and piezoelectric sensing elements and integrated with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (“CMOS”) circuitry on the same chip. The sensor employs piezoresistive strain gauges for static force and piezoelectric strain gauges for dynamic changes in force. Both piezoresistive and piezoelectric sensing elements are electrically connected to integrated circuits provided on the same substrate as the sensing elements. The integrated circuits can be configured to amplify, digitize, calibrate, store, and/or communicate force values electrical terminals to external circuitry.

A microelectromechanical device may include: a semiconductor carrier; a microelectromechanical element disposed in a position distant to the semiconductor carrier; wherein the microelectromechanical element is configured to generate or modify an electrical signal in response to a mechanical signal and/or is configured to generate or modify a mechanical signal in response to an electrical signal; at least one contact pad, which is electrically connected to the microelectromechanical element for transferring the electrical signal between the contact pad and the microelectromechanical element; and a connection structure which extends from the semiconductor carrier to the microelectromechanical element and mechanically couples the microelectromechanical element with the semiconductor carrier.

A diaphragm structure of a micromechanical component includes: a diaphragm integrated via at least one spring element into a layered structure, the diaphragm spanning a cavern, so that at least one section of the diaphragm edge extends up to and beyond the edge area of the cavern; and an anchoring structure formed in the overlap area between the diaphragm and the cavern edge area. The anchoring structure includes at least one anchor element structured out of the layered structure above the cavern edge area, and one through opening for the anchor element formed in the edge area of the diaphragm, so that there is a clearance between the anchor element and the through opening which allows for a mechanical stress relaxation of the diaphragm.

An acoustic sensor adapted to convert acoustic vibration to a change in an electrostatic capacitance to detect the acoustic vibration is provided. The acoustic sensor includes a semiconductor substrate, a back plate including a fixed plate arranged to face a surface of the semiconductor substrate, and a fixed electrode film arranged on the fixed plate, and a vibrating electrode film arranged to face the back plate with a space formed therebetween. The vibrating electrode film includes a plate-like vibrating member that vibrates in response to sound pressure. The vibrating electrode film is fixed to the back plate with a fixing unit thereof including one or more fixing portions each including a fixing protruding end that is arranged on a protruding end of a leg portion protruding from an edge of the vibrating member. The vibrating member has an edge portion surrounding at least a part of the fixing protruding end.

A method and structure for a PLCSP (Package Level Chip Scale Package) MEMS package. The method includes providing a MEMS chip having a CMOS substrate and a MEMS cap housing at least a MEMS device disposed upon the CMOS substrate. The MEMS chip is flipped and oriented on a packaging substrate such that the MEMS cap is disposed above a thinner region of the packaging substrate and the CMOS substrate is bonding to the packaging substrate at a thicker region, wherein bonding regions on each of the substrates are coupled. The device is sawed to form a package-level chip scale MEMS package.

A micromechanical mirror device has: a plate-shaped mirror having a reflecting surface for reflecting light, the reflecting surface being configured to be planar; a closed frame structure supporting the plate-shaped mirror and completely framing an edge of the plate-shaped mirror; a spring arrangement having at least two spring structures arranged mirror-symmetrically and connecting the closed frame structure to a stationary support structure, the spring arrangement being configured such that the closed frame structure and the plate-shaped mirror can be brought into a resonant vibrational state with respect to the support structure; and a connecting arrangement having at least four connecting spring structures arranged mirror-symmetrically and each connecting the plate-shaped mirror to the closed frame structure; the connecting spring structures being configured to be elastically deformable and arranged such that they deform back and forth in the resonant vibrational state so that the plate-shaped mirror is partially mechanically decoupled from the closed frame structure.

A micromechanical structure of a MEMS device, integrated in a die of semiconductor material provided with a substrate and having at least a first axis of symmetry lying in a horizontal plane, has a stator structure, which is fixed with respect to the substrate, and a rotor structure, having a suspended mass, mobile with respect to the substrate and to the stator structure as a result of an external action, the stator structure having fixed sensing electrodes capacitively coupled to the rotor structure; a compensation structure is integrated in the die for compensation of thermo-mechanical strains. The compensation structure has stator compensation electrodes, which are fixed with respect to the substrate, are capacitively coupled to the rotor structure, and are arranged symmetrically to the fixed sensing electrodes with respect to the first axis of symmetry.

First reinforcement stripes are formed on a process surface of a base substrate. A first epitaxial layer covering the first reinforcement stripes is formed on the first process surface. Second reinforcement stripes are formed on the first epitaxial layer. A second epitaxial layer covering the second reinforcement stripes is formed on exposed portions of the first epitaxial layer. Semiconducting portions of transistor cells are formed in or portions of micro electromechanical structures are formed from the second epitaxial layer.