MEMS Expands Its CMOS Presence

According to Germany-based MEMS foundry X-Fab, one of its prime assets is the in-house co-existence of MEMS and CMOS mixed-signal processes. Because MEMS devices are manufactured using techniques that are similar to those employed for ICs, X-FAB plans to exploit the synergies offered by the alliance of both technologies. It has a dedicated 400 m2 of MEMS backend cleanroom and 1200 m2 of CMOS front-end cleanroom. In total, the X-FAB MEMS foundry boasts a capacity of 2500 MEMS wafer starts per month.

The foundry's main focus is on the high-volume manufacturing of bulk and surface micromachined technologies both with and without CMOS integration. X-FAB has developed its own technology platforms for MEMS applications, such as pressure, inertial, and infrared sensors. According to the firm, they can easily be adapted to meet customer requirements.

Meanwhile, a French company called DelfMEMs has developed a wafer RF MEMS device for mobile phones. It boasts switching speed of less than 1 s. According to the company, this innovation has been achieved simultaneously with a costcutting approach. The technology also has demonstrated an attractive low actuation voltage in the region of 8 to 12 V.