Novel test structures for stiction characterization by adhesion force measurement

A major challenge in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) is unintentional adhesion known as stiction. In order to prevent stiction in MEMS devices, it is indispensable to gain an understanding of the underlying mechanisms by thoroughly characterizing the stiction behaviors. One approach for stiction characterization is to measure the adhesion force which is required to separate two surfaces in contact. The magnitude of this adhesion force is determined by attractive and repulsive surface forces and therefore reveals information about the dominant stiction mechanism. For this purpose, micro devices have been fabricated which are capable of measuring adhesion forces for in-plane and out-of-plane contact and furthermore are used to evaluate the influence of contact force and the dwell time in contact on the adhesion force.