Microsystems

EE 5349, Section 5 Fall 2009

1. Instructor: Dan Popa
2. Office Location: NH 525, and ARRI 211
3. Office Hours: MoWe 10am-12pm
4. Phone: 817-272-5982
5. Fax: 817-272-5952
TA N/A
6. Email: popa@uta.edu
Course venue Mo/We 2:30-3:50, NH 109
Course 1 page flyer

7. Course Prerequisites:

EE 5344 or permission of instructor. Please come see me, call me, or email me if you have additional questions prior to signing up for the course. ME, MSE, and BME students are welcome.

8. Required Readings/Materials:

Textbooks:

  • Modeling MEMS and NEMS, by J.A. Pelesko, D. H. Bernstein, Publisher: Chapman&Hall/CRC Press, 2003, ISBN: 1-59488-306-5 (required)
  • Fundamentals of Microfabrication, by Marc. J. Madou, , Second Ed., Publisher: CRC Press, 2002, ISBN 0-8493-0826-7 (required)
  • Microsystem Technology and Microrobotics, by S. Fatikow, U. Rembold, Publisher: Springer-Verlag, 1997, ISBN: 3-540-605658-0 (recommended, on library reserve)
  • Fundamentals of Microsystems Packaging, by Rao Tummala (Ed.), Publisher: McGraw Hill, 2001, ISBN: 0-07-137169-9 (recommended, on library reserve)
  • Foundations of Ultraprecision Mechanism Design, by St. Smith, D.G. Chetwynd, Publisher: CRC Press, 1992, ISBN: 2-88449-001-9 (recommended, on library reserve)
  • Fundamentals and Applications of Microfluidics, Second Edition (Integrated Microsystems), by Nam-Trung Nguyen, Steven T. Wereley, Publisher: Artech House Publishers, 2006,  ISBN: 1580539726 (recommended, on library reserve)

9. Course Description:
Introduction to Microsystems Technologies (MST). MST is a somewhat broader discipline than MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems) because it is not restricted to materials and fabrication commonly used in semiconductor electronics. This survey course will provide complementary information to a traditional MEMS course, in particular it will discuss non-silicon precision micromachining, precision design principles, microrobotics, and packaging of microsystems. It will also introduce students to modeling and control of microsystems in general, and of microactuators and microrobots in particular. The concepts covered will be backed up by numerous examples of micromechanical, microoptical and microfluidic systems. This course emphasizes micromanufacturing, and the process of going from the chip, to a device, to a complete microsystem. It complements EE 5344 – Introduction to MEMS and EE 6345 – Advanced MEMS, and puts an emphasis on the systems aspects of MEMS.
10. Course Learning Goals/Objectives:
The goals of the course are as follows: 1) To introduce students to modeling, simulation and control of microsystems, in particular of microactuators. 2) To provide information on micromachining and microfabrication processes for non-Silicon materials 3) To provide information on assembly, packaging of microsystems 4) To allow students to practice concepts learned in class in order to design, fabricate, package, and test micro-mechanical, micro-optical, or micro-fluidic systems. The course will focus on: 1) Non-silicon microfabrication technology 2) Modeling and simulation of microsystems 3) Precision robotics and packaging 4) Examples of microsystems.
11. Lecture/Topic Schedule
Please note that this schedule is tentative and may change during the semester.
  • Week 1 - August 24, 26, Lectures 1,2
  • Week 2 - August 31, Sept 2, Lectures 3,4
    • Modeling of microsystems - what is different? (scaling laws)
    • Examples: Polymer microfabrication and Aplications to Microfludics (Dr. Mason Graff)
    • Online material 1
    • Online material 2
  • Week 3 - September 9, Lecture 5
    • Modeling: Refresher in continuum mechanics: mechanics of beams, plates, statics, dynamics. Scaling laws.
    • Online material 1
    • Online material 2
    • Homework #1 posted September 9, due September 23.
  • Week 4 - September 14, 16 Lectures 6,7
    • Modeling: Refresher on electrostatics, electromagnetics, fluid dynamics, heat conduction, multiphysics, MATLAB simulation.
    • Modeling: Refresher in continuum mechanics and scaling laws in MST
    • Online material 1
    • Online material 2
  • Week 5 - September 21, 23 Lectures 8,9
  • Week 6 - September 28, 30 Lectures 10,11
    • Fabrication: Mechanical micromachining
    • Fundamental concepts in precision engineering: kinematics
    • Online material
  • Week 7 - October 5, 7 Lectures 12,13
  • Week 8 - October 12, 14 Lectures 14,15
  • Week 9 - October 19, 21 Lectures 16, 17
    • Fabrication: Basics of Lithography, Deposition, Wet and Dry Etching (bulk micromachining)
    • Online material
    • Midterm (in class) on October 21
  • Week 10 - October 26, 28 Lectures 18,19
  • Week 11 - November 2, 4 Lectures 20, 21
  • Week 12 - November 9, 11 Lectures 22, 23
  • Week 13 - November 16, 18 Lectures 24, 25
  • Week 14 - November 23, 25 Lectures 26, 27
    • Sensors for microsystems: position, velocity, acceleration, force, pressure.
    • Microoptics, microfluidics, microassembly.
    • Homework #4 due Nov. 25.
  • Week 15 - November 30, Dec 2 Lectures 28, 29
    • Micropackaging
    • Future directions in microsystems and course recap.
    • Final Project presentation (In-class) Dec 2.
  • Week 16 - December 7-11
    • Final Exam (In-class, comprehensive) Dec 7

12. Specific Course Requirements:
  • Homeworks: 5
  • Reading Assignments: After each course. The assigned reading material is given out in order to make you better understand the concepts. Materials from the reading assignments may be part of course exams.
  • Examinations: One midterm (in-class) and one final (in-class).
  • Course Project: Due on December 2, through a report and an in-class presentation. This project requires students to focus on a microsystem from a list provided in class, and walk through details related to its manufacturing and characterization. Students should identify suitable materials, designs, models, and processes to manufacture the microsystem and report their findings in a 8-10 page research report. Select a topic of interest early and let me know what it is during office hours.
  • Final Examination: Final Exam Comprehensive.
  • Missed deadlines for take-home exams and homeworks: Maximum grade drops 10% per late day. Talk to me for full credit on late assignments under extenuating circumstances.
  • Grading Format Weighting: 25% Homeworks 25% Midterm 25% Course Project and 25% Final.
  • Academic Dishonesty will not be tolerated. All homeworks and exams are individual assignments. Your take-home exams and homeworks will be carefully scrutinized to ensure a fair grade for everyone.
  • Attendance and Drop Policy: Attendance is not mandatory. However, if you skip classes, you will find the homework and exams more difficult. Assignments are going to be posted here, however, due to the pace of the lectures, copying someone else's notes may be an unreliable way of making up an absence. You are responsible for all material covered in class regardless of absences.
13. Online Materials