SiO2/SiN membranes as MEMS Pirani gauges for wide pressure measurement range

Thanks to an original surface microfabrication process, large membranes suspended 1 micron above a substrate have been elaborated. A membrane with a wide heat exchange area and such a small gap allows the gauge to be sensitive in the high vacuum regime, and ensures a broader pressure range of measurement. By optimizing the membrane and beam sizes, this paper shows that one can combine different membranes to design a packaged sensor with a wide sensitive pressure range (10
^-2
to 10
⁵
Pa) and a very low power consumption (maximum 115 microwatt in this paper). These results allow the design of a fully integrated sensor, based on a unique technology, that can be integrated for in-situ pressure measurements in vacuum applications.