Analysis and wafer-level design of a high-order silicon vibration isolator for resonating MEMS devices

This paper presents the analysis and preliminary design, fabrication, and measurement for mechanical vibration-isolation platforms especially designed for resonating MEMS devices including gyroscopes. Important parameters for designing isolation platforms are specified and the first platform (in designs with cascaded multiple platforms) is crucial for improving vibration-isolation performance and minimizing side-effects on integrated gyroscopes. This isolation platform, made from a thick silicon wafer substrate for an environment-resistant MEMS package, incorporates the functionalities of a previous design including vacuum packaging and thermal resistance with no additional resources. This platform consists of platform mass, isolation beams, vertical feedthroughs, and bonding pads. Two isolation platform designs follow from two isolation beam designs: lateral clamped–clamped beams and vertical torsion beams. The beams function simultaneously as mechanical springs and electrical interconnects. The vibration-isolation platform can yield a multi-dimensional, high-order mechanical low pass filter. The isolation platform possesses eight interconnects within a 12.2 × 12.2 mm2 footprint. The contact resistance ranges from 4–11 ! depending on the beam design. Vibration measurements using a laser-Doppler vibrometer demonstrate that the lateral vibration-isolation platform suppresses external vibration having frequencies exceeding 2.1 kHz. (Some figures in this article are in colour only in the electronic version)