Development of Reliability Test Guidelines for Microelectromechanical Systems in Military Applications

Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and microsystems technologies are being increasingly considered for use in military vehicles and weapon systems. Assets ranging from aircraft and communications to munitions may soon incorporate MEMS technologies. These MEMS devices must perform their required functions for the duration of the equipment's mission profile. Long-term performance in a given scenario can be assured through an understanding of the predominant MEMS failure modes. Once the failure modes have been identified, standardized tests can then be developed and conducted on representative devices to detect the potential for these failures. However, there is a need to implement standardized tests and requirements to ensure adequate long-term performance of MEMS devices in fielded and emerging military systems. To this end, Concurrent Technologies Corporation has been tasked by the U.S. Army to initiate efforts to standardize test methods that have been developed under previous activities. This paper presents an overview of the MEMS activities under the MEMS reliability assessment program and describes the MEMS reliability test guidelines that are being developed under this effort.