MEMS Reliability Assessment Program – Progress to Date

As the Army transforms into a more lethal, lighter and agile force, the technologies that support these systems must decrease in size while increasing in intelligence. Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are one such technology that the Army and DOD will rely on heavily to achieve these objectives. The MEMS devices within these systems will be required to last as long as the lifetime of the weapon systems in which they are embedded which may be decades. MEMS devices are also required to function properly after extended periods of inactivity while in storage. Even though the reliance on MEMS devices has been increasing, there have been limited studies performed to determine their reliability and failure mechanisms. Accordingly, the US Army Corrosion Office at Picatinny Arsenal, NJ manages the MEMS Reliability Assessment Program to address this issue. The goals of the MEMS Reliability Assessment Program are to 1) Establish the reliability of MEMS devices including the impact of transportation, long term storage, operating environment, packaging & interconnection issues; 2) Analyze the compatibility of MEMS devices with energetic and other hazardous materials found in military items; 3) Identify failure mechanisms and failure rates; 4) Develop accelerated test protocols for assessing the reliability of MEMS; 5) Develop reliability models for these devices; 6) Identify a standardizing body, standard terminology, definitions, and categories for MEMS devices; 7) Determine potential test methodologies for assessing these mechanisms. Current ongoing efforts in support of the program include: 1) an assessment of the Long-term storage performance and standards requirements, 2) initiation of ESS testing for the identification of failure mechanisms of selected devices, 3) drafting of a joint test protocol for assessment of the corrosion potential of MEMS devices, 4) assessment of applicability of reliability software packages for use with MEMs devices and 5) development of test guidelines and test capabilities for the assessment of MEMS reliability. Recent accomplishments of the program include an assessment of the MEMS & NEMS technologies currently of interest to the Department of Defense, Test Guidelines for Environmental Stress Screening (ESS) of MEMS devices and components, Long-Term Storage Test Guidelines, Assessment of the Barriers to Implementation, and other tools and methodologies to facilitate the transition of MEMS & NEMS to the Department of Defense. The MEMS assessment generated under this program will benefit the MEMS user community by filling the information gap that currently exists for reliability. With the rapid growth of the MEMS industry it is crucial to consider the reliability of this emerging technology and its applications in the early stages of its development