A micromechanical device, in particular a sensor device, and a method for manufacturing a micromechanical device are provided. The micromechanical device has a housing, the housing including a first cavity, and the housing including a second cavity that is separate from the first cavity. The micromechanical device is configured in such a way that a predetermined first gas pressure prevails in the first cavity, and a predetermined second gas pressure which is reduced compared to the first gas pressure prevails in the second cavity. A heating element is situated in the area of the second cavity. The micromechanical device has a printed conductor, the heating element being heatable with the aid of the printed conductor.

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.

Capped microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices are described. In at least some situations, the MEMS device includes one or more masses which move. The cap may include a stopper which damps motion of the one or more movable masses. In at least some situations, the stopper damps motion of one of the masses but not another mass.

Embodiments relate to sensor and sensing devices, systems and methods. In an embodiment, a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) device comprises at least one sensor element; a framing element disposed around the at least one sensor element; at least one port defined by the framing element, the at least one port configured to expose at least a portion of the at least one sensor element to an ambient environment; and a thin layer disposed in the at least one port.

A micro-electromechanical device includes a semiconductor substrate, in which a first microstructure and a second microstructure of reference are integrated. The first microstructure and the second microstructure are arranged in the substrate so as to undergo equal strains as a result of thermal expansions of the substrate. Furthermore, the first microstructure is provided with movable parts and fixed parts with respect to the substrate, while the second microstructure has a shape that is substantially symmetrical to the first microstructure but is fixed with respect to the substrate. By subtracting the changes in electrical characteristics of the second microstructure from those of the first, variations in electrical characteristics of the first microstructure caused by changes in thermal expansion or contraction can be compensated for.

A system and method for reducing offset in a MEMS sensor are disclosed. In a first aspect, the system is a MEMS sensor that comprises a sensing reference plane, at least one anchor coupled to the sensing reference plane, at least one proof mass coupled to the at least one anchor, wherein one of the at least one proof mass moves under an external excitation, a pattern of sensing elements coupled between the sensing reference plane and the at least one proof mass to detect motion normal to the sensing reference plane, wherein the pattern of sensing elements shares at least three axes of polarity anti-symmetry, and a signal processing circuit to combine the pattern of sensing elements thereby providing an output proportional to the external excitation. In a second aspect, the sensing reference plane is divided by two axes forming four quadrants on the sensing reference plane.

A micromechanical component is provided, the micromechanical component enclosing a cavity, the micromechanical component including a sensor element situated in the cavity, and the micromechanical component including a getter situated in the cavity. The micromechanical component includes a structure, situated between the sensor element and the getter, which is designed in such a way that a particle that is desorbed by the getter is sorbed onto and/or into an area of the micromechanical component that is spaced apart from the sensor element.

A microscale device may include 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 may define a patterned frame that defines one or more components of the microscale device. The microscale device may also include a conformal coating of substantially uniform thickness extending throughout the carbon nanotube forest. The carbon nanotube forest may have a thickness of at least three microns. The conformal coating may substantially coat the nanotubes, define coated nanotubes and connect adjacent nanotubes together such that the carbon nanotube forest is sufficiently robust for liquid processing, without substantially filling interstices between individual coated nanotubes. The microscale device may also include a metallic interstitial material infiltrating the carbon nanotube forest and at least partially filling interstices between individual coated nanotubes.

In accordance with one embodiment, a single chip combination inertial and pressure sensor device includes a substrate, an inertial sensor including a movable sensing structure movably supported above the substrate, and a first fixed electrode positioned adjacent to the movable sensing structure, and a pressure sensor including a gap formed in the sensor at a location directly above the movable sensing structure, and a flexible membrane formed in a cap layer of the device, the flexible membrane defining a boundary of the gap and configured to flex toward and away from the gap in response to a variation in pressure above the flexible membrane.

A micromechanical component is provided, the micromechanical component including a deflection device which is deflectable parallel to a deflection direction, and the micromechanical component including a damping device, a surface of the deflection device facing the damping device being greater than a sectional area of the deflection device disposed perpendicular to the deflection direction and situated in a region of the deflection device that is facing away from the damping device.