Application of miniature micromachined Fabry-Perot interferometer to optical fibre WDM system

Harper, J. S.; Rosher, P.A.; Fenning, S.C.; Mallinson, S.R.

doi:10.1049/el:19890712

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 1 publication

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Parallelplate actuators are a subset of electrostatic actuators that are particularly suited to incorporation with Fabry-Pérot filters, because the same cavity can be used simultaneously as a Fabry-Pérot cavity and as the gap for the parallel-plate electrostatic actuator. Various methods have been used for defining this gap: a sacrificial layer may be employed [41,42,53,54]; two substrates may be bonded together with a spacer layer defining the desired gap [30,36,55]; in-plane cavities and mirrors may be fabricated in a single dry-etch step [56,57]. A typical configuration for a parallel-plate actuator is shown in figure 10, with flexible arms supporting a suspended top mirror above a fixed bottom mirror.…”

Section: Actuator Typesmentioning

confidence: 99%

MEMS-based microspectrometer technologies for NIR and MIR wavelengths

Schuler

Milne

Dell

et al. 2009

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Commercially manufactured near-infrared (NIR) instruments became available about 50 years ago. While they have been designed for laboratory use in a controlled environment and boast high performance, they are generally bulky, fragile and maintenance intensive, and therefore expensive to purchase and maintain. Micromachining is a powerful technique to fabricate micromechanical parts such as integrated circuits. It was perfected in the 1980s and led to the invention of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMSs). The three characteristic features of MEMS fabrication technologies are miniaturization, multiplicity and microelectronics. Combined, these features allow the batch production of compact and rugged devices with integrated intelligence. In order to build more compact, more rugged and less expensive NIR instruments, MEMS technology has been successfully integrated into a range of new devices. In the first part of this paper we discuss the UWA MEMS-based Fabry–Pérot spectrometer, its design and issues to be solved. MEMS-based Fabry–Pérot filters primarily isolate certain wavelengths by sweeping across an incident spectrum and the resulting monochromatic signal is detected by a broadband detector. In the second part, we discuss other microspectrometers including other Fabry–Pérot spectrometer designs, time multiplexing devices and mixed time/space multiplexing devices.

show abstract

Section: Actuator Typesmentioning

confidence: 99%

MEMS-based microspectrometer technologies for NIR and MIR wavelengths

Schuler

Milne

Dell

et al. 2009

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…3,4 Tunable Fabry-Perot interferometers ͑FPIs͒ have been fabricated using primarily surface micromachining for applications including gas sensors and wavelength division multiplexing ͑WDM͒. 7 Their device was successfully used as a narrowband filter providing isolation between the two channels operating in the 1.3-m optical fiber transmission window. 7 Their device was successfully used as a narrowband filter providing isolation between the two channels operating in the 1.3-m optical fiber transmission window.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bulk micromachining of a MEMS tunable Fabry-Perot interferometer: effect of residual silicon on device performance

Srivastava

Shenoy

Forrest

et al. 2004

J. Micro/Nanolith. MEMS MOEMS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A broadband tunable filter for the infrared spectral region is desired for use as a wavelength selective element in a miniature absorption spectrometer. We present the design, fabrication, packaging, and characterization of a bulk micromachined Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) for meeting this need. A novel approach to fabricate a MEMSbased tunable resonant cavity using two separate wafers bonded using a ''lock-and-key'' spacer design is outlined, with the goal of realizing electrostatically actuated membranes from films predeposited on base substrates. This ability could enable the pursuit of MEMS devices without in-house chemical vapor deposition (CVD) capability, after overcoming the shortcomings of bulk micromachining. The FPI device was designed with a planar structure comprising two face-to-face bonded chips of overall lateral dimension 10ϫ10 mm with deflection regions of 2ϫ2 mm. The device employs electrostatic actuation to tune the output wavelength, for which finite element modeling predicted low (Ͻ1 V) actuation voltages for movement of the membrane. Experimental results from device testing (mechanical) were found to differ from the theoretical predictions, primarily due to fabrication issues. Specifically, the device performance was found to be greatly influenced by the amount of residual silicon on the wafer chip following inductively coupled plasma (ICP) backside etching, with high voltages (ϳ30 times higher than modeled) required for actuation of the device. Through a combination of modeling and experimental measurements, it is demonstrated that the ability to produce MEMS devices by releasing membranes from films predeposited on substrates is highly susceptible to error in etching and packaging.

show abstract