MEPTEC MEMS, held this year in the heart of San Jose, CA, is traditionally a niche conference with a small exhibit show floor. This proximal setting provides the opportunity for conference attendees to speak one-on-one with actual solution providers. Exhibitors, such a Palomar Technologies, are a key part of the conference—sharing and discussing valuable information about the latest microelectronic packaging trends and innovations.
This year’s conference focused on Micro Electronic Mechanical Systems (MEMS)—both the application’s versatility and it’s growing global impact in the microelectronic packaging industry. Although a relatively broad topic, the line up of conference speakers delivered very timely and insightful presentations. Mobile MEMS and Bio-MEMS were indeed the buzzwords of the day.
A quick look at the presenter topics: the morning sessions kicked off with “Disposable Mircofluid Devices for Life Science Applications” (Luc Bousse, QuantaLife Inc.) and “The Value Chain of Consumer Sensors” (Kevin A. Snow, Sensor Platforms); and the afternoon covered “Accelerated MEMS Growth through Adoptions in Personal Mobile Devices” (Janusz Bryzek, Fairchild Semiconductors), “MEMS Sensors for the Smart Grid” (Igor Paprotny, BSAC) and “Future Innovations: MEMS as Snowflakes, Voiceprints, Secure RFID Chips” (Joshua Cross, Veratag).
Mr. Bryzek’s presentation on MEMS in personal mobile devices was a highlight, bringing the MEMS world down to the practical, everyday level. He delivered several slides on what he calls “In/On/Around the Body MEMS”:
- MEMS monitoring daily physical activity (physical fitness monitors)
- 24-hour disposable contact lens with a pressure sensor for eyes (MEMS sensor close to the eye for glaucoma detection)
- MEMS enabling “Bio to Bit”(advances in healthcare and point-of-care at home)
- Diabetes management with a nanopump, using MiniMed’s Smart Infusion Pump
- iPhone enabled breath analysis and gene analysis
- Digestible wireless sensors
It is predicted that MEMS will become the Central Nervous System for the Earth (coined by industry-experts as “CeNSE”), possibly reaching 1 trillion sensors by 2020 and 7 trillion by 2030!
MEMS applications are no doubt major players in modern technology, having already gone through the infant stage towards global commercialization. Already, MEMS are the foundation for ultra-personalized health care and mobile and wireless applications that are reshaping worldwide communication behavior. The MEMS challenge then becomes how to meet demand, and how to do so on a cost-effective basis with smart time-to-market methods.
Assembly Services (the contract assembly division of Palomar Technologies) works with several MEMS device manufacturers, offering turnkey contact manufacturing services, prototyping and process development while providing the flexibility to move production in-house should a customer plan to purchase their own bonding equipment.
AuSn solder is an excellent option when considering die-attach materials for applications requiring high-strength, high-temperature stability, precision placement, clean materials, and ease of use. Advances in packaging equipment have increased throughput, making it a much more commercially viable solution for applications such as MEMS assemblies.
Uniquely positioned as a premier high-accuracy wire and die attach packaging service provider, Assembly Services is the only lab in North America to offer expert MEMS assembly process know-how with Palomar Technologies world-class wire and die attach equipment…all in the same facility…in Carlsbad, CA. It is indeed a one-stop-shop!
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Richard Hueners
Product Marketing Manager
Palomar Technologies