Design and characterization of microscale heater structures for test die and sensor applications

We describe a class of microscale heaters fabricated with CMOS processes on silicon wafers. These heaters were designed to produce localized high temperatures above 400/spl deg/C for test and sensor applications. The temperature levels produced for various input powers and the thermal profiles surrounding the heater for packaged and wafer-level heater structures were studied to guide the placement of microelectronics integrated with the heater structures on the same die. To show the performance of the design, we present resistance sensor measurements, IR temperature profiles, and results from a 3D thermal model of the die. This effort demonstrates that it is possible to successfully operate both a microscale heater and microcircuits on the same die.