A Thermopile Detector Based on Micro-Bridges for Heat Transfer

Zhou, Na; Ding, Xuefeng; Li, Hongbo; Ni, Yue; Pu, Yonglong; Mao, Haiyang

doi:10.3390/mi12121554

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…For the thermistor-based flow sensors, their fabrication process is relatively simple and low-cost, but complicated external circuits are usually required to convert resistance variation to voltage signals. Compared with the thermistor-based flow sensors, the Seebeck effect-based thermopile flow sensors can be fabricated through a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) compatible process as well, but they require no complex peripheral circuits [ 21 ] and thus are superior when used for airflow sensing. For a thermopile-based gas flow sensor, improving the thermoelectric conversion efficiency of the thermopile and enhancing the heat exchange between the airflow and the heat source are two important routes for the performance optimization.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Thermopile-Based Gas Flow Sensor with High Sensitivity for Noninvasive Respiration Monitoring

Liu

Zhang

Ding³

et al. 2023

Micromachines

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In this work, a N/P polySi thermopile-based gas flow device is presented, in which a microheater distributed in a comb-shaped structure is embedded around hot junctions of thermocouples. The unique design of the thermopile and the microheater effectively enhances performance of the gas flow sensor leading to a high sensitivity (around 6.6 μV/(sccm)/mW, without amplification), fast response (around 35 ms), high accuracy (around 0.95%), and mood long-term stability. In addition, the sensor has the advantages of easy production and compact size. With such characteristics, the sensor is further used in real-time respiration monitoring. It allows detailed and convenient collection of respiration rhythm waveform with sufficient resolution. Information such as respiration periods and amplitudes can be further extracted to predict and alert of potential apnea and other abnormal status. It is expected that such a novel sensor could provide a new approach for respiration monitoring related noninvasive healthcare systems in the future.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Thermopile-Based Gas Flow Sensor with High Sensitivity for Noninvasive Respiration Monitoring

Liu

Zhang

Ding³

et al. 2023

Micromachines

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“…According to the Seebeck effect, the potential output of thermopiles is proportional to the temperature difference, so one of the ways to pursue high output performance of thermopiles is to increase the temperature difference and improve the output. Zhou et al [4] designed and investigated a thermopile detector with thermocouples distributed in a microbridge. The thermopile detector consisted of 16 pairs of n-poly-Si/poly-Si thermocouples, which was fabricated by using a low-cost and high-yield complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The thermopile detector consisted of 16 pairs of n-poly-Si/poly-Si thermocouples, which was fabricated by using a low-cost and high-yield complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process. The microbridge-based thermopile device can achieve a 13.8% increase in output voltage compared with a thermopile device using a continuous film [4]. Zhang et al [5,6] designed a MEMS thermopile infrared detector with a high absorption-thermal conductivity film structure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Micromachined Infrared Thermopile Detector Based on a Suspended Film Structure

et al. 2023

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The micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) infrared thermopile is the core working device of modern information detection systems such as spectrometers, gas sensors, and remote temperature sensors. We presented two different structures of MEMS infrared thermopiles based on suspended film structures. They both deposited silicon nitride over the entire surface as a passivated absorber layer in place of a separate absorber zone, and the thermocouple strip was oriented in the same direction as the temperature gradient. The same MEMS preparation process was used and finally two different structures of the thermopile were characterized separately for testing to verify the impact of our design on the detector. The test results show that the circular and double-ended symmetrical thermopile detectors have responsivities of 27.932 V/W and 23.205 V/W, specific detectivities of 12.1×107 cm·Hz1/2·W−1 and 10.1×107 cm·Hz1/2·W−1, and response time of 26.2 ms and 27.06 ms, respectively. In addition, rectangular double-ended symmetric thermopile has a larger field of view than a circular thermopile detector, but is not as mechanically stable as a circular thermopile.

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“…As a side note, MEMS thermopiles sensors are used as important uncooled bolometers and pyroelectric detectors [26,27] and this type of sensor with high performance can be mass-produced by using standard CMOS processes [28][29][30][31]. This makes it possible for MEMS thermopiles and CMOS ICs to be integrated on the same chip by adopting interleaved MEMS and CMOS processing.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Thermopile Infrared Sensor Array Pixel Monolithically Integrated with an NMOS Switch

Zhang

et al. 2022

Micromachines

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In this article, we present the design, fabrication, and characterization of a thermopile infrared sensor array (TISA) pixel. This TISA pixel is composed of a dual-layer p+/n− poly-Si thermopile with a closed membrane and an n-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) switch. To address the challenges in fabrication through the 3D integration method, the anode of the thermopile is connected to the drain of the NMOS, both of which are fabricated on the same bulk wafer using a CMOS compatible monolithic integration process. During a single process sequence, deposition, etching, lithography, and ion implantation steps are appropriately combined to fabricate the thermopile and the NMOS simultaneously. At the same time as ensuring high thermoelectric characteristics of the dual-layer p+/n− poly-Si thermopile, the basic switching functions of NMOS are achieved. Compared with a separate thermopile, the experimental results show that the thermopile integrated with the NMOS maintains a quick response, high sensitivity and high reliability. In addition, the NMOS employed as a switch can effectively and quickly control the readout of the thermopile sensing signal through the voltage, both on and off, at the gate of NMOS. Thus, such a TISA pixel fabricated by the monolithic CMOS-compatible integration approach is low-cost and high-performance, and can be applied in arrays for high-volume production.

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A Thermopile Detector Based on Micro-Bridges for Heat Transfer

Cited by 4 publications

References 29 publications

A Thermopile-Based Gas Flow Sensor with High Sensitivity for Noninvasive Respiration Monitoring

A Thermopile-Based Gas Flow Sensor with High Sensitivity for Noninvasive Respiration Monitoring

Micromachined Infrared Thermopile Detector Based on a Suspended Film Structure

A Thermopile Infrared Sensor Array Pixel Monolithically Integrated with an NMOS Switch

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