Nano-Scale Abrasion Studies of Materials Used in MEMS Devices and Packages

Abrasion plays an important role in the manufacture and use of certain microstructures. In this paper, we explore the nano-scale abrasion characteristics of Al, Si, Pyrex™ glass, and glass-mica ceramic (Macor™), using a commercial scribing tool adapted to provide controlled velocity and force, and accurate positioning for abrasion utilizing two abrasion heads: a diamond facet edge and a custom alumina-grit head. While Al is easily abraded, it tends to create build-up of material along the edges. Silicon provides triangular clean groves with minimum widths ≈ 460 nm. Macor provides scalloped grooves that show some chipping and have minimum widths of ≈ 320 nm. Glass provides clean, rounded grooves, with minimum widths of ≈ 200 nm. This paper also describes how controlled abrasion can be exploited for the non-lithographic fabrication of nanochannels which are of interest in several fluidic devices.