MMC Activities..............2
MEMS-ONE Pj...............6
Column.......................7
Overseas Trends............8

New Year’s Greetings
Tamotsu Nomakuchi, Chairman
Micromachine Center
I would like to take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to all for a happy and prosperous 2006, as well as
express a few thoughts at the start of a new year.
The Japanese economy is currently in a period of gradual recovery centered on private-sector demand. This year –hailed as the year Japan’s economy will finally and without fail emerge from the long period of stagnation that hasensued since the economic bubble burst – will also be the year of an “offensive revolution” that will reshape Japan’s
manufacturing industry anew.
In the 1980s, the United States worried over the twin concerns of budget and trade deficits as the EU and Japancaught up with then overtook its manufacturing industries. This period saw rising demand in the US from the
manufacturing world, represented by the Young Report, for measures to strengthen international competitiveness.
Various strategies undertaken by the government put American competitiveness on the road to recovery. The
Palmisano Report, “Innovative America” – a report claiming that fostering innovation was imperative for America tomaintain its competitive advantage – was then released in December 2004.
As the rapid economic growth in various Asian countries enabling them to catch up with Japan, Japan today is now
facing the same situation as once faced by the US when Japan caught up economically with it. In particular, theformulation of measures to address intensifying competition with China and other emerging innovation regions –known
as the “emerging tigers” – is an important task Japan now faces.
The Third Science and Technology Basic Plan beginning this fiscal year, gives “the importance of human resource
training and creating a competitive environment” (from things to people) as the principle that should underlie scienceand technology policy and the national position to aim for. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry alsoannounced last year “The New Industry Creation Strategy, 2005” devising action plans in seven important fields for thecreation of new industries in addition to training and recruiting workers to support competitiveness, creating acommon infrastructure to support priority fields, building up advanced material industries that will serve as afoundation for competitiveness in new cutting-edge industrial fields, and establishing policies for high-risk researchand development.
Because of their reputation as small, high-precision, low-energy, high-added-value devices key to a diversity ofindustrial fields such as information and telecommunications, medicine, biotechnology, and automotives,
micromachines/MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) – the technologies promoted by the MMC – are regarded asvital for strengthening the international competitiveness of major areas within Japan’s manufacturing industry today.
Against this background, it has been decided to establish within the MMC in April this year a MEMS Council
comprising MEMS-related businesses for the purpose of providing support for the further development of MEMS
industries and contributing to the strengthening of the international competitiveness of Japanese industry.
This council will promote activities such as the support of business revitalization through the expansion andstrengthening of policy recommendation activities regarding basic issues in order to develop MEMS industries and afoundry service network for building an infrastructure for research group activities regarding important themes andMEMS development, as well as through the establishment of a website for introducing new products and technologies
such as MEMS devices, foundries, and manufacturing equipment as a means of encouraging exchange between MEMS
businesses.
Your participation in and cooperation with the council and its activities would be highly welcomed and appreciated.
At the MMC, we will continue with our activities – mobilizing industry, academia, and government – with the aim ofestablishing basic technology for and the industrialization of micromachines/MEMS in order to contribute to thereshaping of Japan’s manufacturing industry and to the strengthening and maintenance of Japan’s international
competitiveness.
In conclusion, I would like to again wish everyone all the best for a happy and prosperous 2006.

Internet Home Page : http://www.mmc.or.jp/

MMC Activities

The Eleventh International Micromachine/Nanotech Symposium
On November 10 (Thursday) 2005, the EleventhInternational Micromachine/Nanotech Symposium washeld in the Science Hall of the Science Museum inTokyo’s Kitanomaru Park, sponsored by the Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry and the New Energy andIndustrial Technology Development Organization(NEDO), with assistance from the Japan Auto Racing
Association. The symposium started with an opening
address from Tamotsu Nomakuchi, Chairman of theCenter, followed by a greeting from the guest of honor,
Tetsuya Yamamoto, Director of the Machinery System
Technology Development Dept. at NEDO. This time,
before the lectures, a special session was planned with akeynote speech and panel discussion on the theme of“Towards development of the MEMS industry”, followedby twelve lectures in the three sessions “The frontiers ofthe micromachine business”, “Micromachine applications
expected to blossom”, and “The leading edge
micromachine technologies”. Three hundred and thirtynine people from a range of specialist fields attended,from a number of companies, universities, and research
institutions in the fields of electronics, equipment andmachinery, automotive, materials and chemicals and soon, making the symposium a great success. This is areport of the symposium overall.
The special session was held to raise awareness of the
MEMS Industry Group to be inaugurated by theMicromachine Center in April 2006 with the aim ofpromoting the further development of the MEMS
industry in a situation where the market for MEMS
devices and products is expanding, and to contribute toenhancing the international competitiveness of theJapanese MEMS industry. First Prof. Hiroyuki Fujita ofTokyo University gave a keynote speech entitled “Theexpansion of the MEMS industry and policies fordeveloping new sectors”, followed by a discussion of thethemes “The direction of the MEMS industry” and“Policies for creating a new industry and driving
development”, mediated by Prof. Fujita with the six
panelists Hitoshi Ogata (Senior Director of Developmentat Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, and MEMS Informal

Committee Representative), Haruo Ogawa (Director of
New Core Business Planning at Olympus Corporation),
Hiroya Taguchi (Chairman of The Japan Society of
Mechanical Engineers and Chief Engineer of the Hitachi
Research and Development Center), Hiroshi Tsuchiya(Assistant Section Chief, Industrial Machinery Division,
Manufacturing Industries Bureau of the Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry), Tsuneyuki Miyake(Deputy Editor of Nikkei Microdevices), and Prof. Harri
Kopola (Research Director, VTT Electronics), one of thelecturers.
Regarding “The direction of the MEMS industry”, Mr.
Ogawa and Mr. Ogata talked about the micro and nanostrategies of their respective companies, while Prof.
Kopola explained the efforts towards building a MEMS
industry in Finland. It was very much apparent thatcompanies both in Japan and overseas are focusing on
MEMS and nanotechnology as core technologies. Mr.
Miyake rounded off the discussion by talking about how
there is no doubt that MEMS represents a third wave thatis forming a significant market, with semiconductors as
the brains, displays as the face, and MEMS devices as thelimbs and the senses, and how major disparities will open
up between companies depending on their strategies.
Next, they discussed the topic “Policies for creating a
new industry and driving development”. Mr. Taguchi
compared the MEMS research approaches of the Societyof Mechanical Engineers and the Institute of ElectricalEngineers, stressing the necessity for horizontal linkage
between them for MEMS development. Then Mr. Ogata,the representative of the MEMS Informal Committee
which is promoting the establishment of the MEMS
Industry Group, talked about the need for exchanges
within industry to promote the MEMS industry,
introducing the MEMS Industry Group as theorganization for fulfilling this role. Next Mr. Tsuchiya of
the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry explained
the strong policies of the Ministry in providing the best
backup for raising MEMS technology, such as preparing
new projects to meet the expectations for the MEMS
industry. Finally the discussion was completed with the

The panel discussion

The keynote speech from Prof. Fujita

2extremely useful. To round up the session, Prof. Isao
Shimoyama of Tokyo University gave a lecture entitled“Fine MEMS”, talking of the need for combinations of
MEMS and nanotech functions, integrated fabrication of
MEMS and semiconductors, and the development of highintegration composite MEMS technologies for high
MEMS/MEMS integration, in order for MEMS to meet
diversified needs. And although MEMS devices andcomponents are incorporated in many products, thegeneral public is largely unaware of them so he made theinteresting suggestion that products containing MEMS
should be labeled with a mark like that used by Intel.
In Session 3, “The leading edge micromachinetechnologies”, there were lectures about MEMS andmaterials, ultraprecision microfabrication and its
applications, nanometrology, and the mechanical limits ofstructural thin-film materials and nanomaterials.
Development of the basic technologies regarding
materials, fabrication, measurement, and reliability are
essential for MEMS development, and on this occasion,
we encountered the leading edge of these basic
technologies being pursued steadily at universities andthe like, both here and overseas. Among these, Yoshimi
Takeuchi of Osaka University talked about ultraprecision
microfabrication and its applications. Although
semiconductor microfabrication technologies tend to playa central part in MEMS fabrication technology, Mr.
Takeuchi presented extensive fabrication data showingthat machining at the nanolevel is possible not only
superficially but on three-dimensional surfaces too.
Finally Dr. Christopher Muhlstein of Pennsylvania State
University spoke on the subject of understanding themechanical limits of structural thin-film materials andnanomaterials. He explained how he analyzed thebreakdown and fatigue behavior of thin film materials
with the aim of improving the reliability of MEMS, and heshowed a method of improving the mechanicalcharacteristics of thin films with a protective coating on
their surface based on those results. The reliability of thinfilm materials is an important research issue forcommercialization of MEMS, and this topic was of greatinterest to the audience.
Starting after 9 and going on till 6 in the evening, it
was a long event starting with the panel discussion in thespecial session followed by twelve lectures packed into atight schedule. The venue was enthused by the palpable
sense of potential and expectation surrounding
micromachines and MEMS. It was apparent that MEMS
technology, that was in its initial phase centered on
research and development, is now becoming afunctioning industry. Thanks to the timely topics
provided by the speakers from Japan and overseas and to
the efforts of the program committee, this symposium
was a tremendous success.

presentation of a video letter from MANCEF President,
Dr. Kees Eijkel expressing strong support for the MEMS
Council.
In Session 1, “The frontiers of the micromachine
business”, there were presentations that strongly evoked
the scene of work at the various companies, on thesubject of inkjet printers from Mitsuro Abe of Seiko
Epson, mobile phones from Kunihiko Nakamura of
Matsushita Electric, and inertia sensors such as
acceleration sensors and gyroscopes (angular velocity
sensors) from Bob Sulouff of Analog Devices in the US.
The printer heads at the heart of inkjet printers are one
successful type of MEMS device, and the applications ofprinter heads are not limited to printers. Mr. Abe
explained how recently, the development of applications
is taking off with printer heads used as a tool for the
manufacture of a range of devices such as LCD color
filters, organic EL displays, organic TFTs, plasma display
electrodes, biochips and so on, which was greeted withsurprise. In order to achieve multiband mobile phones,
further technological innovation is required. Among these
innovations, there are expectations for the developmentof small, low-loss RF-MEMS switches and RF-MEMS
filters, and it was explained that relevant research anddevelopment is taking place around the world. MEMS
devices have been commercialized successfully in theform of inertia sensors such as acceleration sensors andgyroscopes (angular velocity sensors), and the wonderful
success story of Analog Devices in the US which
succeeded in breaking into the MEMS industry gave heart
to everybody else involved in the same effort.
In Session 2, “Micromachine applications expected toblossom”, there were lectures introducing the frontiers ofapplied research in medicine, optics, energy, and space,in which MEMS technology is key. Prof. Yoshinobu Babaof Nagoya University gave a lecture on the medical
applications of nanotechnology. Nanobiotechnology ismaking significant advances with microfabrication
technology and molecular nanotechnology, making
possible the development of methods for separating allsorts of biomolecules such as DNA, RNA, proteins andpeptides, for applications in genomics, genetic
information copying, protein science and the like, while
applications in the treatment of cancer are also expected.
In his lecture, Prof. Kopola of VTT Electronics explainedthat in future optoelectronics and optical communication
systems, MEMS technology will be a key technology forminiaturization, integration, and low cost. Osamu
Nakamura of Casio gave a talk on the development ofsubminiature, high-performance reforming fuel cells foruse in mobile terminals. MEMS technology is the key
technology for making the integrated miniature reformer,
an essential part for generating hydrogen from a fuelalcohol such as methanol, and from which the powergenerating cell extracts electrical energy. In his lecture,
Dr. Thomas George who carried out research at NASA,
explained that MEMS and nanotechnology, which achieve
the ultralow volume, ultrasmall size, and ultralow energy
consumption required in space development, are

The Twelfth International Symposium will be held on
November 8 (Wednesday), 2006 at the Tokyo
International Forum as part of Exhibition
MICROMACHINE.

3

The 16th Micromachine Exhibition
The 16 t h Micromachine Exhibition was held inconjunction
withThe
11 t hInternational
Micromachine/Nanotech Symposium at the Science
Museum in Kitanomaru Park, Tokyo, over 3 days from
November 9 to 11, 2005, and was a resounding success.
The theme for this year’s exhibition was “Fields in the
Spotlight - Micro/Nano Technologies Open up Next
Generation Business: International Exhibition on MicroUltraprecision/Microfabrication, MEMS, Nanotechnology,
and Biotechnology”.
In addition to the Micromachine Center and 10 of its
supporting member organizations, willing and generous
cooperation in the arrangement of exhibitions was also
provided by private businesses, universities, andindependent public organizations. A total of 259 displays(362 booths) were exhibited by businesses, organizations,
universities, and research organizations. France’s National
Center for Scientific Research (Centre National de laRecherche Scientifique) and 15 other organizations fromabroad also presented exhibits.
As with the previous year’s exhibition, Micromachine2005 occupied the Science Museum’s entire first floor hall
space and preparation room, a part of the lounge, and apart of the second floor in keeping with the increased
number of exhibitors.
Furthermore, with 38 companies (3 from overseas)
and groups participating for the first time, the exhibition
presented a wide range of new micromachine- andnanotechnology-related technologies and products.
Thanks in part to the exhibition being held
simultaneously with the 11th International
Micromachine/Nanotech Symposium and the MEMS-ONE
Project Interim Report Presentation, a record attendanceof more than 9,098 people was achieved over the threedays of the event. With researchers, engineers, andadministrators from the frontlines of diverse technologicalfields accounting for a large number of these attendees,
another factor in the exhibition’s huge success was its roleas venue for the exchange of ideas and sharing of research
information between researchers in different fields,

providing an ideal opportunity for the discovery of new
possibilities for technologies and solutions to a wide range
of issues concerning technological development.
The main products displayed at the exhibition
included micromachines, their associated components andapplication systems, MEMS (micro-electromechanicalsystems), MEMS manufacturing equipment/design tools,
nano-technologies and materials, other materials,
biotechnology and medical systems, evaluation andmeasuring instruments. In this regard, the micromachine
exhibitions are becoming specialized events ideally suitedfor people working in R&D, technology, design,
production/manufacturing, or management/administration
in a diversity of fields, including mechanisms andprecision machinery; electrical devices and electronics,
medicine; information technology; automobiles andtransportation; biology, physics, and chemistry;architecture; steel; space aviation; and shipping andoceanography.
Furthermore, the exhibition provided an excellent
opportunity for the promotion of technologies, devices,and products by businesses in the field of micromachine
R&D; for the presentation of the results of research by
universities and other research organizations; and for theannouncement of products and technologies by other
newly participating businesses.

The exhibition hall, busy with attendees

The post-exhibition reception

The 16th Micromachine Exhibition is to be held:
Dates: Nov. 7 (Tues.) – Nov. 9 (Thurs.), 2006
Venue: Tokyo International Forum(Yurakucho, Tokyo)
Inquiries: Mesago Messe Frankfurt Corporation
T e l: 0 3 - 3 2 6 2 - 8 4 4 1
F a x: 0 3 - 3 2 6 2 - 8 4 4 2
E m a i l: i n f o @ m i c r o m a c h i n e . j p
U R L: http://www.micromachine.jp

4

ULVAC Inc.’s MEMS Foundry Services
Yoko Yamakawa, Managing Director,
Engineering Planning Officer,
Tsukuba Metamaterial Laboratory Director

As a rule, for devices, we ask the customer to provide
the design, while the foundry faithfully fulfills production.
The basic philosophy of ULVAC’s foundry service is toenable the customer to carry out the design freely without
any preconceptions even when new processes are
required, or when it is difficult to judge which material touse, then to pass the production baton to ULVAC
whereupon we manufacture the product to specificationand hand it back. Naturally, we work to ensure that there
are pricing benefits too.

1. ULVAC’s approach to MEMSULVAC has developed equipment for MEMS and at
the same time we have been developing the associatedprocesses. For example, we are offering equipmentthat overcomes issues that were considered difficult in
the past such as deposition and etching of functional
materials like high-permittivity film and magnetic film,
deep etching quartz and Si, or dry etching etchresistant materials with low vapor pressure and so on.
For example, equipment such as the SME-200 sputter
machine for high-permittivity film and SAW device
electrode formation; the CME-200 CVD machine forsilicon oxide and nitride films; the NLD-6000 which
demonstrates its power in deep etching quartz; andthe NLD-Si that can deep-etch Si are evaluated highlyin the field of MEMS.
In addition, besides giving polymer film itself thefunctionality of water repellency, hydrophilicity,
biocompatibility, and antimicrobial properties,ULVAC’s vapor deposition polymerization method canform a uniform polymer film even in the deep parts ofminute structures. These properties are drawing
attention to the method as a technology perfectly
suited to MEMS. In parallel with the development of
this machinery, ULVAC is aggressively pursuingchallenging new development in the bio, finemechatronics and fine chemicals sectors.
The MEMS foundry service, started in November
2003, is positioned to leverage these equipment andprocess developments for production of MEMS
devices. In other words, as well as providing services
incorporating ULVAC’s technologies into processing asa foundry managed by an equipment manufacturer, weare leveraging our technology and know-how gained
through development of equipment and processes. In
this way we are expanding our mission by providing
rapid service to meet our customers’ requirements for
new processes and equipment.

3. Introducing ULVAC’s MEMS manufacturing
Here we provide an example of ULVAC’s in-house
device manufacturing. When we developed our MO-CVD
equipment for LEDs, we produced a prototype blue LED
to evaluate the equipment characteristics. Figure 1 shows
an emission test ( = 440.9 nm). The quantum well of theluminescent layer is formed of InGaN, sandwiched
between p-AlGaN and n-GaN to form an LED.
Figure 2 shows an example of Si deep etching. This is
a processing example of ULVAC’s proprietary NLD-Si
method. It achieves Si etching with a width of 0.2 µm, adepth of 6.5 µm, and an aspect ratio of 30 or more.

Figure 1. Blue LED

Figure 2. High aspect etching using
the NLD-Si method

4. Future efforts
As we saw above, ULVAC’s MEMS foundry aims toprovide a wide range of processing technologies in atimely manner. We have a comprehensive range of lines,
from deposition and etching to bonding and dicing, andwe are currently augmenting our facilities. At our current
scale of operations, we are accepting orders for small-lot
production suited to R&D level manufacturing. For the
future, we plan to expand into larger-scale processing.
Besides integrated production for our own company, the
ULVAC MEMS foundry also welcomes subcontracting
orders in our area of specialization. In terms of quantity,
we accept orders starting from one wafer. Please addressenquiries to the Micromachine Center or through the
ULVAC website.
http://www.ulvac.co.jp

2. The features of ULVAC’s MEMS foundry
services
Since we started the foundry, the response has
exceeded our expectations. Besides production of MEMS
devices, requests have come in for single processes likedeposition of single films or etching. We are making great
efforts to upgrade our equipment and improve ourprocesses in response to difficult orders, and we believethat as the foundry of an equipment manufacturer, wehave a distinctive offering.

5

Introducing process inverse problem analysis software
Yasunori Suzuki, Group Leader, Mathematical Systems, Inc.
• Mask data file output (the format conforms to theframework)• Process recipe file output (the format conforms to
the framework)

PurposeIn designing MEMS devices, the design of themasks used in the processes is a major task, while atthe same time, it involves very difficult problems. A
skilled practitioner who has a thorough knowledge of
MEMS can use their experience and knowledge toestablish the necessary processes. However, for a
beginner, it is very difficult to draw a MEMS pattern
while thinking through the processes, and it is not
unusual to draw patterns that are impossible.
This software facilitates design by resolving thedifficult problems of MEMS device design whileproviding the user with guidance, and it is expected to
be an effective learning tool especially for MEMS
beginners.

To enable the user to perform analysis easily, thesettings can be performed using a wizard (thescreenshot shows a prototype).

Functions
The software has the following functions for
performing inverse problem analysis.
• Load MEMS device pattern (top, cross section) files• Specify MEMS device pattern dimensions• Set process conditions (equipment used, processes etc.)• Inverse process guidance for MEMS device patterns• Framework linkage

State of development
Following specification development last year, thesoftware is now in the development phase. The firststage of development will be completed this year, andthe  version is scheduled for release in 2006.

Introducing about package bonding analysis software
Yinsheng Li, Senior Manager, Social Technology Office
Engineering Services Department, Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc.
Bonding technology is a technology that is used for
MEMS processes and packaging. When dissimilarmaterials are bonded, damage to the bonded interface
and edges may occur due to the influence ofdifferences in the physical properties of the dissimilarmaterials such as their Young's modulus, Poisson's
ratio, coefficient of thermal expansion and so on, andthe geometric configuration of the bonded edges, thematerials and dimensions of the intermediate layers
and other factors.

The package bonding analysis software supports
the design and development of MEMS that may
experience this kind of problem. It includes a material
compatibility analysis function for evaluating thestress singularity at bonded edges, a function foranalyzing the deformation and temperature history
and inheritance arising from changes in the material
and form, a reliability analysis function for evaluatingbond strength.

Development of original Japanese analysis functions
Higher functionality, performance and reliability for MEMS products
Practical systems organically linked to material and process databases
Material &process database

Configuration &dimensions of
the bonded structure

Dissimilar material
bonding compatibility

Judgment of the
Siugularity stresscharacteristics

Distribution &time history oftemperature & stress

History of changes
in the form & material

Environmental factors &atmosphereResponse analysis
corresponding
to temperature change

Reliability
analysis

Selection of bonded
materials and bonding
conditions

Influence ofintermediate layers
and adhesion layers

6

Heat &
loading history

Fatigue lifeColumn

Merger of Integrated Circuits and MEMS
- At the Toyohashi University of Technology -Makoto Ishida, Toyohashi University of Technology
Although sensor and MEMS technology are derived from
integrated circuit (IC) technology, it is not a simple matter tofabricate sensors or MEMS and ICs on the same chip. Because
the microfabrication of ICs has developed to the nm level, thebarriers to this kind of merger are high. This is because ICs
involve ultra high precision engineering, while sensors andMEMS involve precision engineering. Ultraprecision ICs
basically are not amenable to further processing besides the
manufacturing process. On the other hand, the requirements ofsensors and MEMS include materials, structures, andfabrication processes that enable a range of further processing.
Fulfilling these contradictory requirements is the key tomerging the two. One method is to fabricate the sensors andMEMS after fabricating the IC. Another is to constrain the
fabrication of the sensors and MEMS to the extent possible withIC processes. However, it is difficult to fabricate sensors andMEMS with the fullest capability, so compromises must be
made somewhere. We faced the same conflicts at Toyohashi
University in merging sensors and MEMS with integrated
circuits, but we worked to ensure that both were satisfactory as
far as possible. Here I will explain how we built a research anddevelopment environment at the University with the goal of
merging integrated circuits with sensors and MEMS, and I willoffer an example of smart chip development.
Twenty-six years ago now, there were very few universities
in Japan that were actually producing integrated circuits fromthe design stage, while seriously pursuing teaching andresearch. The University of Technology was established in
Toyohashi as the 88th national university, and the current
President Tatau Nishinaga, the late Tetsuro Nakamura (fromNEC), and Yukio Yasuda currently at Kochi University ofTechnology (from Toshiba) took the lead in starting unified
semiconductor-related courses with the aim of building anenvironment where serious teaching and research, andfabrication of integrated circuits could be pursued in one place.
The main equipment at first was a 2-inch line from the NEC
Tamagawa Factory, and in the autumn of 1979, as the 4th year
laboratory experiment (a 3-month experiment called the big
experiment), students succeeded in fabricating a simple npn
bipolar transistor, whereupon a great cheer went up in theclean room. This was the start of it all. The radio produced fromthese six transistors is still running in the VBL exhibition room.
Roughly speaking, if you can make a basic transistor, you canmake however complicated an IC. Then we received a requestfrom Genyo Mitarai of the Research Institute of Environmental
Medicine in Nagoya to develop an EEG IC chip for the
cerebellum of carp for exploring space sickness in a spaceexperiment, for which we pursued development as a Master's
research theme. This chip was used in experiments on the
Endeavor in 1992, when Mamoru Mohri went into space andwhen this chip first left the earth.
In the meantime, up to this year, a course with the samecontent as the big experiment has been held 25 times (25years) for 1 week continuously during the summer holiday.
(More than 400 people have taken part.) All the teaching staff
participated and it was a tough business getting through the hotsummer with the students, but besides maintaining theequipment in operation, it is an excellent opportunity forchecking the machinery (since one member of the staff is anengineering official).
Currently a 4-inch CMOS, 1 micron process is possible using
a stepper. In 1994, the department moved to the Electron
Device Research Center from the original building where it wasestablished, and in 2002 it was incorporated in the VBL(Venture Business Laboratory) facilities. A clean room where
micro and nano processing is possible was set up on the firstfloor of the VBL, and MEMS processing was enhanced. We havefabricated many kinds of smart chips that merge sensors andMEMS with integrated circuits, but MEMS manufacture
requires special process other than the CMOS process, so it hasoften become necessary to use the equipment separately. How
to organize and manage this is a difficult matter, and success
rests upon being able to adjust for the interests of both. It isnecessary to have a relationship where both can allow
compromise as far as possible. It is also necessary to design
hitherto unknown processes.

Si microprobe
electrode array
2 µm
60 µm

100 µmOn-chip signal processors

Source
Gate
Drain

50 µm

Figure 1 Conceptual diagram of a nerve potential
sensor integrating a miniature electrode arrayand signal processing circuit, and electron
microscope photograph of a prototype chip
My proposal for a nerve potential measuring smart chip witha silicon microprobe formed by crystal growth on an IC chipshown in Figure 1 is clearly one such example. This chip which
was at first thought to be completely impossible probably met
with many objections in the laboratory too. That's because if
you give a reason why something cannot be done, any numberof others can also be found. With this background, separate
groups worked on the crystal growth and integrated circuit
processes so that a system was achieved for assessing the
problems and limitations of each process, and for pursuingsolutions by pooling the knowledge of each group. As a result
we were able to develop the chip to a state where it detected asignal from living cells which had been our ambition at the startof last year. 1) In this way we have proposed or prototyped manysmart microchips that incorporate sensors and MEMS with ICs,but in order to raise the level of these chips further, we areproceeding through discussion of the problems involved inmerging ICs with sensors and MEMS.
1) T. Kawano et.al “Three-dimensional multichannel Si
microprobe electrode array chip for analysis of the nervous
system”, IEDM 2004, pp.1013-10167

Overseas Trends

Survey of Trends in the Industrialization of MEMS in Europe
From November 21 to 25 a study tour of foundries,
research institutions, and companies which havesuccessfully set up MEMS businesses in Europe – aleading region in the promotion of MEMS industrialization– was conducted with the aim of contributing to thepromotion of MEMS industries and the development of afoundry service network in Japan.
The tour visited companies and research institutions;at each location, after explaining the situation regarding
the promotion of MEMS industrialization in Japan andreceiving explanations of the activities of the<Locations Visited>

company/institution, problems involved in promoting
MEMS industrialization and methods for their resolution
were discussed. Consequently, we were able to gather
practical, up-to-the-minute information from the frontline
in this field.
The following locations were chosen to ensure that thetour broadly covered the spectrum of MEMS
industrialization and include MEMS foundries, MEMS
device manufacturers, MEMS/nanotechnology research
institutions, and organizations supporting MEMS
industrialization.

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland• Finland’s national research institution; conducts
contracted research• R&D of MEMS/nanoelectronics

MST factory Dortmund• Incubator for microsystem technology• Supports raising the success probability of setting up
MEMS businesses through reduction of costs andproduct development time

IVAM
• Microtechnology association comprising 165 member
businesses and research organizations based mainly inEurope• Supports MEMS industrialization that builds bridges
between businesses and users

X-FAB Semiconductor Foundries• Representative United States/European semiconductor
company• Also promotes MEMS foundry activities

Robert Bosch, Automotive Electronics Division• Largest manufacturer of in-car MEMS sensors• MEMS process development

ST Microelectronics
Locations visited
The study tour enabled the exchange of opinion on thesituation in Europe regarding the promotion of MEMSrelated projects, trends in foundry activities and MEMS
device development, and industrialization support andprovided valuable information with regard to the future
course of this field. In particular, interest in Japan as a

• Major semiconductor manufacturer; also manufactures
MEMS sensors for consumer appliancesmarket for consumer-use MEMS was high, withdiscussions at each location focusing on the possibility ofmarket participation and/or business collaboration.
In addition to interaction between businesses,
interaction between Japan and Europe in the area ofindustrialization support is sure to flourish in the future.

MICROMACHINE No. 54
MICROMACHINE is published quarterly by Micromachine Center (MMC) to promote the international exchange of
information related to micromachines, R&D and other technical topics, and is circulated free of change. Please send
your comments about MICROMACHINE to the publisher :Keiichi Aoyagi, Executive Director, Micromachine Center (MMC)
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