RF-MEMS for high-performance and widely reconfigurable passive components – A review with focus on future telecommunications, Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G applications

Abstract Since its first discussions in literature during late '90s, RF-MEMS technology (i.e. Radio Frequency MicroElectroMechanical-Systems) has been showing uncommon potential in the realisation of high-performance and widely reconfigurable RF passives for radio and telecommunication systems. Nevertheless, against the most confident forecasts sparkling around the successful exploitation of RF-MEMS technology in mass-market applications, with the mobile phone segment first in line, already commencing from the earliest years of the 2000s, the first design wins for MEMS-based RF passives have started to be announced just in late 2014. Beyond the disappointment of all the most flattering market forecasts and, on the other hand, the effective employment of RF-MEMS in niche applications (like in very specific space and defence scenarios), there were crucial aspects, not fully considered since the beginning, that impaired the success of such a technology in large-market and consumer applications. Quite unexpectedly, the context has changed rather significantly in recent years. The smartphones market segment started to generate a factual need for highly reconfigurable and high-performance RF passive networks, and this circumstance is increasing the momentum of RF-MEMS technology that was expected to take place more than one decade ago. On a broader landscape, the Internet of Things (IoT) and the even wider paradigm of the Internet of Everything (IoE) seem to be potential fields of exploitation for high-performance and highly reconfigurable passive components in RF-MEMS technology. This work frames the current state of RF-MEMS market exploitation, analysing the main reasons impairing in past years the proper employment of Microsystem technology based RF passive components. Moreover, highlights on further expansion of RF-MEMS solutions in mobile and telecommunication systems will be briefly provided and discussed

Determinants of emerging technology commercialization: evidence from MEMS technology

The term “emerging technology” refers to new technologies that create substantial changes to industry evolution and enterprise management. Nowadays, such technologies are mainly based on the development of information technology, internet technology, biotechnology and other interdisciplinary areas with potential industrial applications. Although emerging technologies have created opportunities for technological and economic innovation, their “creative destruction” characteristics also result in a very high failure rate in their commercialization processes. Most of the recent studies on the commercialization of emerging technology have focused on developed areas such as the United States, Japan, and the European Union, with few studies on developing countries like China. The present thesis seeks to fill this gap. Taking 112 Chinese MEMS enterprises as a sample, this thesis empirically investigated the determinants of emerging technology in China. Furthermore, a case study (Wuxi BEWIS Sensing Technology, Ltd.) was employed to analyze how these determinants affect the real commercializing process in the Chinese economy. Through multiple regression analysis, the empirical results show that technology property, market conditions, regional innovation network, and enterprise capability are determinants of MEMS commercialization, whereas social environment and policy and regulation do not have significant impacts on the performance of MEMS commercialization.O termo “tecnologia emergente” diz respeito a novas tecnologias que estão a gerar mudanças substanciais na evolução da indústria e na gestão das empresas. Atualmente essas tecnologias baseiam-se sobretudo no desenvolvimento da tecnologia de informação, da tecnologia de internet, da biotecnologia e de outras áreas interdisciplinares com potencial de aplicação industrial. Embora as tecnologias emergentes tenham criado oportunidades para a inovação, tecnológica e económica, as suas características de “destruição criativa” também resultaram numa elevada taxa de insucesso nos processos de comercialização. A maioria dos estudos recentes relativos à comercialização de tecnologia emergente têm-se focado em regiões desenvolvidas tais como os Estados Unidos, o Japão, e a União Europeia, existindo poucos estudos em países em vias de desenvolvimento como é o caso da China. Esta tese procura contribuir para o preenchimento dessa lacuna. Partindo de uma amostra de 112 empresas chinesas de sistemas microeletromecânicos (MEMS), procurou-se investigar empiricamente os determinantes de tecnologia emergente na China. Além disso, foi efetuado um estudo de caso (Wuxi BEWIS Sensing Technology, Ltd.) para analisar como esses determinantes afetam o processo real de comercialização na economia chinesa. Os resultados empíricos, obtidos através de análises de regressão múltipla, mostram que a propriedade tecnológica, as condições de mercado, a rede regional de inovação e a capacidade empresarial são determinantes para a comercialização de MEMS. Por outro lado, constata-se que o ambiente social, a política e a regulamentação não têm impactos significativos no desempenho da comercialização de MEMS

Three Essays on Innovation and Regional Economic Development

The first essay develops a typology that identifies the multiple pathways, functions and operations where innovation can occur in a firm\u27s internal business cycle based upon the extant literature that includes both technological and non-technological activities. This is an important step toward developing a comprehensive strategy for a regional economy and provides a common platform for the discussion of innovation among academics and practitioners.The typology adds to the existing knowledge of how innovation works in organizations by describing the pathways, business functions and operations in a firm\u27s internal-business-process the business strategies used to advance innovation to the market and the market impact that innovation has in a regional economy.The typology is enhanced by the different threads of literature - innovation, technology, organization and marketing. The integrated approach allows academics and practitioners to understand how and where innovation occurs in firms and lays the foundation for robust metrics of the behavioral relationship between variables under study. The result is a set of assessment tools that permits diagnostics of the firm, industry, market and region. The second essay examines the relationship between innovation, emerging technologies, business firms\u27 investment structure, and specialized types of private equity used to finance emerging technologies. A conceptual framework is developed for financial investment and a set of hypotheses tested for investment between Ohio and U.S. firms. Ohio firms take a different investing approach than U.S. firms when investing in a firm\u27s stage of business development but are not significantly different when using specialized types of financing, investing in industry/technology niches, and investing in geographic markets.The third essay explores the role of innovation in business firms. The essay examines the reasons firms invest in innovation and then test the difference in the innovation behavior of firms. Descriptive analysis is per

National MEMS Technology Roadmap - Markets, Applications and Devices

MEMS teknologiaa on jo pitkään käytetty lukuisien eri laitteiden valmistamiseen. Osa näistä laitteista on ollut markkinoilla jo useita vuosia, kun taas osa on vasta kehitysvaiheessa. Jotta tutkimus ja kehitystyötä osattaisiin jatkossa kohdistaa oikeille painopistealueille, on tärkeää tietää mihin suuntaan kehitys on menossa. Tämä työ on osa kansallista MEMS teknologioiden tiekartta -projektia ja sen tavoitteena oli selvittää MEMS laitteiden kehityksen suuntaa. Työ toteutettiin laajana kirjallisuustutkimuksena. Lisäksi tulosten tueksi haastateltiin asiantuntijoita Suomen MEMS teollisuudesta. Työssä tarkasteltiin lukuisia jo markkinoilta löytyviä ja vasta kehitteillä olevia MEMS laitteita ja analysoitiin niitä sekä teknisestä että kaupallisesta näkökulmasta. Tutkimuksen perusteella kävi ilmi, että MEMS markkinat ovat pitkään muodostuneet vakiintuneista laitteista kuten mustesuihkupäistä, kiihtyvyysantureista, paineantureista sekä RF suotimista. Lisäksi mikrofonit, gyroskoopit ja optiset laitteet ovat olleet kaupallisesti saatavilla jo pitkään. Markkinat ovat hiljattain alkaneet tehdä tilaa myös uusille MEMS laitteille, joita tulee ulos nopeaa vauhtia. Viimeisimpänä markkinoille tulleita laitteita ovat erilaiset mikrofluidistiikka laitteet, mikrobolometrit sekä yhdistelmäanturit. Pian kaupallisesti saatavia laitteita ovat magnetometrit, automaattitarkennuslaitteet sekä MEMS oskillaattorit. Näiden laitteiden lisäksi kehitteillä on monia uusia MEMS laitteita, jotka saattavat tarjota merkittäviä mahdollisuuksia tulevaisuudessa. Kehitteillä olevia laitteita ovat erilaiset lääketieteelliset laitteet, atomikellot, mikrojäähdyttimet, mikrokaiuttimet, energiantuottolaitteet sekä RFID-laitteet. Kaikki kehitteillä olevista laitteista eivät välttämättä tule menestymään kaupallisesti, mutta jatkuva tutkimustyö osoittaa, että monilla MEMS laitteilla on potentiaalia useissa eri sovelluksissa. Markkinanäkökulmasta tarkasteltuna suurin potentiaali piilee kuluttajaelektroniikka markkinoilla. Muita tulevaisuuden kannalta potentiaalisia markkinoita ovat lääketieteelliset ja teollisuusmarkkinat. Tutkimus osoitti että MEMS laitteiden tutkimukseen ja kehitykseen liittyy monia potentiaalisia painopistealueita tulevaisuudessa. Käyttömahdollisuuksien parantamiseksi monet jo vakiintuneet laitteet kaipaavat vielä parannuksia. Toisaalta, jo olemassa olevia laitteita voidaan hyödyntää uusissa sovelluksissa. Lisäksi monet uusista ja kehitteillä olevista MEMS laitteista vaativat vielä kehitystyötä.MEMS technology has long been applied to the fabrication of various devices from which some have already been in use for several years, whereas others are still under development. In order to find future focus areas in research and development activities in the industry, it is important to know where the development is going. This thesis was conducted as a part of National MEMS technology roadmap, and it aimed for determining the evolution of MEMS devices. The work was conducted as an extensive literature review. In addition, experts from the Finnish MEMS industry were interviewed in order obtain a broader insight to the results. In this thesis various existing and emerging MEMS devices were reviewed and analyzed from technological and commercial perspectives. The study showed that the MEMS market has long been composed of established devices, such as inkjet print-heads, pressure sensors, accelerometers and RF filters. Also gyroscopes, microphones and optical MEMS devices have already been on the market for a long time. Lately, many new devices have started to find their place in the markets. The most recently introduced commercial devices include microfluidic devices, micro bolometers, and combo sensors. There are also a few devices including magnetometers, MEMS oscillators, and auto-focus devices that are currently crossing the gap from R&D to commercialization. In addition to the already available devices, many new MEMS devices are under development, and might offer significant opportunities in the future. These emerging devices include various bioMEMS devices, atomic clocks, micro-coolers, micro speakers, power MEMS devices, and RFID devices. All of the emerging devices might not find commercial success, but the constant stream shows, that there are numerous applications, where MEMS devices could be applied in. From a market point of view, the greatest potential in the future lies in consumer electronics market. Other highly potential markets include medical and industrial markets. The results of the thesis indicate that there are many potential focus areas in the future related to MEMS devices, including improvements of the existing devices in order to gain better utilization, application of the existing devices in new areas, and development work among the emerging devices

Design of a MEMS-based 52 MHz oscillator

Mechanical resonators are widely applied in time-keeping and frequency reference applications. Mechanical resonators are preferred over electrical resonators because of their high Q. In the $4.1 billion (2008) timing market, quartz crystals are still ubiquitous in electronic equipment. Quartz crystals show excellent performance in terms of stability (shortterm and long-term), power handling, and temperature drift. MEMS resonators are investigated as a potential alternative to the bulky quartz crystals, which cannot be integrated with IC technology. MEMS offer advantages in terms of size, cost price, and system integration. Efforts over recent years have shown that MEMS resonators are able to meet the high performance standards set by quartz. Critical success factors are high Q-factor, low temperature drift, low phase noise, and low power. This PhD thesis addresses the feasibility of scaling MEMS resonators/oscillators to frequencies above 10 MHz. The main deliverable is a 52 MHz MEMS-based oscillator. The MEMS resonators at NXP are processed on 8-inch silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers, with a SOI layer thickness of 1.5 µm and a buried oxide layer thickness of 1 µm. The strategic choice for thin SOI substrates has been made for two reasons. First, MEMS processing in thin silicon layers can be done with standard CMOS processing tools. The silicon dioxide layer serves as a sacrificial layer. Second, identical substrates are used for the Advanced Bipolar CMOS DMOS (ABCD) IC-processes. This class of processes can handle high voltages (ABCD2 up to 120V). The high voltage capability is suitable for the transduction of the mechanical resonator. Both MEMS and IC are processed on a similar substrate, since the strategic aim is to integrate the MEMS structure with the IC-process in the long run. Frequency scaling is investigated for both the capacitive and the piezoresistive MEMS resonator. MEMS resonators have been successfully tested from 13 MHz to over 400 MHz. This is achieved by decreasing the size of the resonator with a factor 32. We show that the thin SOI layer and the decreasing size of the resonator increase the effective impedance of the capacitive resonator at higher frequencies. For the piezoresistive resonator, we show that this readout principle is insensitive to geometrical scaling and layer thickness. Therefore, the piezoresistive readout is preferred at high frequencies. The effective impedance can be kept low, at the expense of higher power consumption. Frequency accuracy can be improved by decreasing the initial frequency spread and the temperature drift of the MEMS resonator. The main source of initial frequency spread is geometrical offset, due to the non-perfect pattern transfer from mask layout to SOI. A FEM tool has been developed in Comsol Multiphysics to obtain compensated layouts. The resonance frequency of these designs is first-order compensated for geometric offset. The FEM tool is used to obtain compensated resonators of various designs. We show empirically that the compensation by design is effective on a 52 MHz square plate design. For the compensated design, frequency spread measurements over a complete wafer show that there are other systematic sources of frequency spread. The resonance frequency of the silicon MEMS resonator drifts about –30 ppm/K. This is due to the Young’s modulus of silicon that depends on temperature. We have investigated two compensation methods. The first is passive compensation by coating the silicon resonator with a silicon dioxide skin. The Young’s modulus of silicon dioxide has a positive temperature drift. Measurements on globally oxidized structures show that the right oxide thickness reduces the linear temperature drift of the resonator to zero. A second method uses an oven-control principle. The temperature of the resonator is fixed, independent of the ambient temperature. A demo of this principle has been designed with a piezoresistive resonator in which the dc readout current through the resonator is used to control the temperature of the resonator. With both concepts, more than a factor 10 reduction in temperature drift is achieved. To demonstrate the feasibility of high-frequency oscillators, a MEMS-based 56 MHz oscillator has been designed for which a piezoresistive dogbone resonator is used. The amplifier has been designed in the ABCD2 IC-process. The MEMS oscillator consumes 6.1 mW and exhibits a phase noise of –102 dBc/Hz at 1 kHz offset from the carrier and a floor of –113 dBc/Hz. This demonstrates feasibility of the piezoresistive MEMS oscillator for lowpower, low-noise applications. Summarizing, this PhD thesis work as part of the MEMSXO project at NXP demonstrates a MEMS oscillator concept based on the piezoresistive resonator in thin SOI. It shows that by compensated designs for geometric offset and oven-control to reduce temperature drift, a frequency accuracy can be achieved that can compete with the performance of crystal oscillators. In a benchmark with MEMS competitors the concept shows the lowest phase noise, making it the most suited concept for wireless applications

Acoustic Wave Based MEMS Devices, Development and Applications

Acoustic waves based MEMS devices offer a promising technology platform for a wide range of applications due to their high sensitivity and the capability to operate wirelessly. These devices utilize acoustic waves propagating through or on the surface of a piezoelectric material. An acoustic wave device typically consists of two layers, metal transducers on top of piezoelectric substrate or thin films. The piezoelectric material has inherent capabilities of generating acoustic waves related to the input electrical sinusoidal signals placed on the transducers. Using this characteristic, different transducer designs can be placed on top of the piezoelectric material to create acoustic wave based filters, resonators or sensors. Historically, acoustic wave devices have been and are still widely used in telecommunications industry, primarily in mobile cell phones and base stations. Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) devices are capable of performing powerful signal processing and have been successfully functioning as filters, resonators and duplexers for the past 60 years. Although SAW devices are technological mature and have served the telecommunication industry for several decades, these devices are typically fabricated on piezoelectric substrates and are packaged as discrete components. Considering the wide flexibility and capabilities of the SAW device to form filters, resonators there has been motivation to integrate such devices on silicon substrates as demonstrated in (Nordin et al., 2007; M. J. Vellekoop et al., 1987; Visser et al., 1989). One such example is illustrated in (Nordin et al., 2007) where a CMOS SAW resonator was fabricated using 0.6 m AMIs CMOS technology process with additional MEMS post-processing. The traditional SAW structure of having the piezoelectric at the bottom was inverted. Instead, the IDTs were cleverly manufactured using standard complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process and the piezoelectric layer was placed on the top. Active circuitry can be placed adjacent to the CMOS resonator and can be connected using the integrated metal layers. A SAW device can also be designed to have a long propagation path between the input and output transducer. The propagating acoustic waves will then be very sensitive to ambient changes, allowing the device to act as a sensor. Any variations to the characteristics of the propagation path affect the velocity or amplitude of the wave. Important application for acoustic wave devices as sensors include torque and tire pressure sensors (Cullen et al., 1980; Cullen et al., 1975; Pohl et al., 1997), gas sensors (Levit et al., 2002; Nakamoto et al., 1996; Staples, 1999; Wohltjen et al., 1979), biosensors for medical applications (Andle et al., 1995; Ballantine et al., 1996; Cavic et al., 1999; Janshoff et al., 2000), and industrial and commercial applications (vapor, humidity, temperature, and mass sensors) (Bowers et al., 1991; Cheeke et al., 1996; Smith, 2001; N. J. Vellekoop et al., 1999; Vetelino et al., 1996; Weld et al., 1999). In recent years, the interest in the development of highly sensitive acoustic wave devices as biosensor platforms has grown. For biological applications the acoustic wave device is integrated in a microfluidic system and the sensing area is coated with a biospecific layer. When a bioanalyte interacts with this sensing layer, physical, chemical, and/or biochemical changes are produced. Typically, mass and viscosity changes of the biospecific layer can be detected by analyzing changes in the acoustic wave properties such as velocity, attenuation and resonant frequency of the sensor. An important advantage of the acoustic wave biosensors is simple electronic readout that characterizes these sensors. The measurement of the resonant frequency or time delay can be performed with high degree of precision using conventional electronics. This chapter is focused on two important applications of the acoustic-wave based MEMS devices; (1) biosensors and (2) telecommunications. For biological applications these devices are integrated in a microfluidic system and the sensing area is coated with a biospecific layer. When a bioanalyte interacts with this sensing layer, physical, chemical, and/or biochemical changes are produced. Typically, mass and viscosity changes of the biospecific layer can be detected by analyzing changes in the acoustic wave properties such as velocity, attenuation and resonant frequency of the sensor. An important advantage of the acoustic wave biosensors is simple electronic readout that characterizes these sensors. The measurement of the resonant frequency and time delay can be performed with high degree of precision using conventional electronics. Only few types of acoustic wave devices could be integrated in microfluidic systems without significant degradation of the quality factor. The acoustic wave based MEMS devices reported in the literature as biosensors are film bulk acoustic wave resonators (FBAR) and surface acoustic waves (SAW) resonators and SAW delay lines. Different approaches to the realization of FBARs and SAW resonators and SAW delay lines used for various biochemical applications are presented. Next, acoustic wave MEMS devices used in telecommunications applications are presented. Telecommunication devices have different requirements compared to sensors, where acoustic wave devices operating as a filter or resonator are expected to operate at high frequencies (GHz), have high quality factors and low insertion losses. Traditionally, SAW devices have been widely used in the telecommunications industry, however with advancement in lithographic techniques, FBARs are rapidly gaining popularity. FBARs have the advantage of meeting the stringent requirement of telecommunication industry of having Qs in the 10,000 range and silicon compatibility

The Music Bluetooth Controller: An Intersection Between Technology and Music

The modern musician faces a new challenge: how can technology be used to enhance a performance? This thesis documents the development of a Bluetooth remote controller that will aid today’s performing musicians by interacting with a digital display (e.g., an iPad) to flip musical score pages remotely. At its core, while mimicking a Bluetooth pedal (the current industry standard), this device attaches to the musician’s hand. In its pilot stages, the device has been referred to “MBC” (Music Bluetooth Controller)

RF-MEMS Technology for High-Performance Passives (Second Edition) - 5G applications and prospects for 6G

The focus of this book develops around hardware, and in particular on low-complexity components for Radio Frequency (RF) applications. To this end, microsystem (MEMS) technology for RF passive components, known as RF-MEMS, is employed, discussing its potentialities in the application frame of 5G. The approach adopted is practical, and a significant part of the content can be directly used by scientists involved in the field, to put their hand on actual design, optimization and development of innovative RF passive components in MEMS technology for 5G and beyond applications. This update (which includes a review of the main approaches to the modelling and simulations of MEMS and RF-MEMS devices) is timely and will find a wider readership as it crosses into the translational aspects of applied research in the subject. Key features • With over 50 pages of new content, the book will be 1/3 larger than the 1st edition. • New chapter on simulation and modelling techniques. • Practical approach to the design and development of RF-MEMS design concepts for 5G and upcoming 6G. • Includes case studies. • Video figures. • Includes a review of the business landscape

A COMPREHENSIVE OVERVIEW OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN RF-MEMS TECHNOLOGY-BASED HIGH-PERFORMANCE PASSIVE COMPONENTS FOR APPLICATIONS IN THE 5G AND FUTURE TELECOMMUNICATIONS SCENARIOS

The goal of this work is to provide an overview about the current development of radio-frequency microelectromechanical systems technology, with special attention towards those passive components bearing significant application potential in the currently developing 5G paradigm. Due to the required capabilities of such communication standard in terms of high data rates, extended allocated spectrum, use of massive MIMO (Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output) systems, beam steering and beam forming, the focus will be on devices like switches, phase shifters, attenuators, filters, and their packaging/integration. For each of the previous topics, several valuable contributions appeared in the last decade, underlining the improvements produced in the state of the art and the chance for RF-MEMS technology to play a prominent role in the actual implementation of the 5G infrastructure