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ECEn Department | College of Engineering | BYU

Instructors & Times

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Syllabus

Text:

Chang Liu, Foundations of MEMS, Prentice Hall 2006, ISBN 0-13-147286-0.

Errata for this textbook: http://memsbook.imdcorp.net/errata.htm

Prerequisites

Either ECEn 450 or ME 372 or Instructor's Permission

Introduction

Welcome to MEMS, and to what will be a fun and intriguing adventure! MEMS is a rapidly emerging field of study and MEMS based projects are becoming increasingly important - as an example think of DLP Projector systems. There are many University research groups working on MEMs related topics and more and more commercial companies emerging in this field.  MEMS is by its very nature multidisciplinary and has been developed by researchers from Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering backgrounds but recently more and more fields have become involved in MEMS research, stretching from Biology to Physics.  The specific topics that would fit under the umbrella of MEMS can be debated, which is usually true for any emerging field of study.  In developing this course we have chosen what we consider the first defining textbook in this area.  In choosing which topics to cover, we will be guided primarily by this text, with small diversions to emphasize the research topics we are actively participating in.

This class will bring together undergraduate and graduate students primarily from the Electrical and Mechanical Engineering majors.  As such, we will attempt to include background material to assist EE's in understanding the mechanical aspects of the subjects and ME's the electrical aspect.  ECEn 550 will be structured to emphasize both how MEMS devices work and how they are built.  Lectures will be given on Wednesdays and Fridays which alternate between Dr. Hawkins and Dr. Jensen on these topics.   In addition, lab sessions will be held on Monday and Tuesday afternoons to allow you to model and build MEMS related structures.  The fabrication portion of these labs will be conducted in the BYU cleanroom in the Clyde building and the modeling portion will take place in room 490 of the Clyde Building.   The class will be broken into 8 different laboratory groups meeting at the times shown in the schedule above.  Each group will participate in a total of 6 fabrication sessions and 6 modeling sessions.  Your laboratory group will be assigned the first day of lecture.

Grading

Final grades for ECEn 550 will be based on the following distribution:

Laboratory Report	25 %
Homework	20 %
Midterm	25 %
Final	30 %

Homework

Homework assignments will be placed on the web. You should check this site regularly for updated information. Homework is due at 5:00 PM every other Wednesday, in the box marked ECEn 550, outside CB 413. The solution to the homework will be posted on the web, immediately after it is due.  Because the homework solutions will be posted this way, late homework will not be accepted, no exceptions. 

Cooperative group study on the homework is encouraged, but simply copying someone else's work is unethical and will leave the student unprepared for exams. Much insight can be gained by studying with one or more groups, if you discipline yourself to find your own solutions first before comparing results. Rely on other's help only when you have exhausted all of your own ideas or have made no progress for 15 or 20 minutes. Remember, the exams will be totally your own work and constitute the greater portion of the grade. One of  the biggest contributor to excessive time spent on homework is failure to read the text material for understanding prior to attempting problems. The text is thorough and well written; take advantage of it!

Questions on homework grading should first be addressed to the TA who grades the homework. Unresolvable differences may be discussed with the professor during office hours.

Miscellaneous

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Schedule and Assignments

ECEn 550 Class Lecture Schedule 

Week	Date	Lecture Topics	Reading	Homework	Solutions	Due
1	9/6,9/8	Intro to MEMS (B.J.), Intro to Microfabrication (A. H.)	Ch. 1  Ch. 2
2	9/13,9/15	Semiconductor Materials (B.J.), Microfabrication (A.H.)	Ch. 3 (pp. 45-58),  Ch. 10 (pp. 326 - 346)	Homework #1	Solutions #1	9/20
3	9/20, 9/22	Mechanical Properties (B.J.), Microfabrication (A.H.)	Ch. 3 (pp. 58-72),  Ch. 10 (pp. 346-370)
4	9/27, 9/29	Mechanical Properties (B.J.), Microfabrication (A.H.)	Ch. 3 (pp. 73-83),  Ch. 11 (pp. 371 - 381)	Homework #2	Solutions #2	10/4
5	10/4, 10/6	Mechanical Properties (B.J.), Microfabrication (A.H.)	Ch. 3 (pp. 83-91),  Ch. 11 (pp. 381 -396)
6	10/11, 10/13	Mechanical Properties (B.J.), Electrostatics (A.H.)	Ch. 3 (pp. 91-95)  Ch. 4 (pp. 103 - 110)	Homework #3	Solutions #3	10/18
7	10/18,10/20	Electrostatics (A.H.)	Ch. 4 (pp. 110 - 152)
8	10/25,10/27	RF MEMS (B.J.)	RF MEMS 1, RF MEMS 2	Homework #4	Solutions #4	11/1
9	11/1,11/3	Thermal Sensing and Actuation (B.J.)	Ch. 5 (pp. 153-191)
10	11/8,11/10	Thermal Sensing and Actuation (B.J.), Piezoresistive Sensors (A.H.)	Ch. 5 (pp. 191-200),  Ch. 6 (pp. 207- 215)	Homework #5	Solutions #5	11/15
11	11/15,11/17	Piezoresistive Sensors (A.H.), Piezoelectric Sensors (B.J.)	Ch. 6 (pp. 216 - 244),  Ch. 7 (pp. XX - XX)
12	11/21	Happy Thankgiving	Read Ahead	Homework #6	Solutions #6	11/29
13	11/29,12/1	Piezoelectric Sensors (B.J.) Sensors and Actuators Summary (A.H.),	Ch. 7 (pp. XX - XX) Ch. 8, Ch. 9,
14	12/6,12/8	SPM (B.J.), Microfluidics (A.H.)	Ch. 14 (pp. XX - XX) Ch. 13 (pp. 422- 434)	Homework #7	Solutions #7	12/13
15	12/13	Lab-on-a-Chip (A.H.)	Ch. 13 (pp. 434 - 454)

Click on the Homework assignment for a copy in PDF format.   Click on the solution for a copy in PDF format.  The homework solutions are given to you as a learning aid. Please do not deprive future students of the opportunity to struggle with these problems and learn from them by copying and distributing solutions. I consider printing these solutions as a violation of the honor code. Please restrict yourself to viewing them on-line. Remember, education is not about getting grades, its about learning to think!

ECEn 550 Laboratory Schedule`    

Fabrication Topics  (In the Cleanroom)                                                                     

 Modeling Topics (490 CB)

Click on the Lab Outline for a given week for a copy in PDF format.  All documents are in PDF format. You will need the Adobe Acrobat Reader to view them. To download a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader, click here.

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Important Dates.

Midterm Due Midnight Oct 21

Final Exam Due Midnight Dec 21

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