Identification of mechanical defects in MEMS using dynamic measurements for application in production monitoring

Investigations for non-destructive characterization of MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems) are presented that can be applied in production monitoring in early stages. Different aspects and experimental results are shown for quadratic and circular silicon membrane structures with artificial structural defects. The quadratic membranes were manufactured with three variations of notches at the edges. The circular membranes had residues on the backside of the membrane resulting from the etching process. The dynamic properties of the structures were measured non-destructively by scanning laser-Doppler vibrometry. The consequences of the generated defects were investigated using the resonant frequencies and mode shapes of the membrane structures in comparison to the dynamic properties of accurate membranes. The results show that the generated defects lead to a variation of the dynamic properties depending on size and position of the defect.