Application of super-micro tester in MEMS bonding strength test

An instrument named Super Micro-Tester (SMT) has been designed for testing the bonding strength of anchors. The maximum load capacity of SMT is 1.4 N, and the minimum resolution is 10 μN at a range of 450 mN. Silicon micro-cantilever specimens with one end anchored on glass were fabricated for this test. In order to simulate shear failure and torsion failure, SMT applied a force through a probe to push micro-cantilevers at the fixed-end and free-end respectively until they failed. The corresponding critical loads were recorded for calculating the bonding strength of different specimens. A microscope was set in front of the specimen to capture the whole test process. The rupture occurs in glass or silicon respectively for different samples. This novel technique provides an effective solution for determining bonding strength in MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical system) devices, and it also can be used to evaluate the strength of micro-cantilevers or micro-bridges.