Making Sense of MEMS

The key MEMS sensors today are accelerometers, gyroscopes, and pressure sensors.

Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) describe a type of device or sensor as well as a manufacturing process. MEMS sensors incorporate tiny devices with miniaturized mechanical structures, typically ranging from 1-100 μm (about the thickness of a human hair), while MEMS manufacturing processes provide an alternative to conventional macro-scale machining and assembly techniques. …

MEMS development stems from the microelectronics industry and combines and extends the conventional techniques developed for integrated circuit (IC) processing with MEMS-specific processes to produce small mechanical structures measuring in the micrometer scale (one millionth of a meter). …

All too often, MEMS technologies are perceived as being all-encompassing solutions, using standardized processes, when in actual fact, they remain largely a one-product, one-process business. A number of companies develop and produce MEMS devices themselves and are defined as integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), whereas some outsource production (fabless), and others operate both models. Much of the confusion in the market can be attributed to this diversity, and the way in which the various verticals subsequently interface make the MEMS market notoriously difficult to define.

At the point of fabrication, there are very few companies operating in the sensors market that offer MEMS together with another technology because of the high cost of market entry and the cost of packaging MEMS devices. Likewise, once a company has committed to manufacturing MEMS devices, it is difficult for that company to change focus due to low margins, higher development costs, and greater complexity. That said, MEMS does enable high-volume production due to the batch fabrication techniques employed, typically resulting in very low costs for each single device.

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