A Piezoresistive Silicon Accelerometer With Monolithically Integrated CMOS-circuitry

A piezoresistive silicon accelerometer with complete on-chip signal conditioning for automotive applications was developed. The sensor is a three- layer device fabricated and bonded completely on a wafer scale. The functional units of the electronic circuit include amplification, temperature drift compensation, and an auto-zero offset compensation capability for the complete device. The results indicate that the sensor fabrication is compatible with a CMOS process and that it has the potential for a low-cost high yield process.