Design World

  • Home
  • Technologies
    • 3D CAD
    • Electronics • electrical
    • Fastening & Joining
    • Factory automation
    • Linear Motion
    • Motion Control
    • Test & Measurement
    • Sensors
    • Fluid power
  • Learn
    • Ebooks / Tech Tips
    • Engineering Week
    • Future of Design Engineering
    • MC² Motion Control Classrooms
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
  • LEAP AWARDS
  • Leadership
    • 2022 Voting
    • 2021 Winners
  • Design Guide Library
  • Resources
    • 3D Cad Models
      • PARTsolutions
      • TraceParts
    • Digital Issues
      • Design World
      • EE World
    • Women in Engineering
  • Supplier Listings

Microhotplates for a Smart Gas Sensor

By Toyohashi University of Technology | February 22, 2017

Share

Gas sensors used for leakage alerts and air quality monitoring are essential in our daily lives. Towards a ubiquitous society, smart gas sensors, which perform signal processing and communication besides sensing, have attracted much attention. In addition, integrating these functions into a single chip leads to low-cost and miniature smart gas-sensing systems.

Semiconductor gas sensors, which are the most widely used gas sensors, require a sensor material to be heated to several hundreds of degree Celsius. Therefore, in order to integrate these gas sensors with electronic circuits, a micro-hotplate (MHP), which is a MEMS-based heating structure, is required to thermally isolate the sensor and the circuits. The MHP is generally mechanically unstable, and there exists a tradeoff between the mechanical stability and thermal isolation property.

Recently, a research team at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Information Engineering at Toyohashi University of Technology proposed the employment of SU-8 as a supporting material for the MHP, in order to improve the mechanical stability, while ensuring the thermal isolation property. Furthermore, SU-8 is a polymer material that is widely used for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and has good mechanical stability and low thermal conductivity. The researchers fabricated the MHP and investigated its heating characteristics.

The first author Assistant Professor, Tatsuya Iwata, said that “By using a thick polymer film, it is possible to realize both the mechanical stability and high thermal isolation property. Furthermore, although we have to evaluate the mechanical stability, this device is promising for smart gas sensors.”

“Mechanical stability is one of the major concerns for fabricating an MHP. Using a polymer material for such microhotplates seems to be an eccentric approach, but surprisingly, it went well. Moreover, this device will boost our study to develop multimodal sensors, which are multifunctional integrated sensors including gas sensors,” said Professor Kazuaki Sawada.

The fabricated MHP consists of a heating membrane with an area of 140 μm × 140 μm, and a 33-μm-thick SU-8 layer deposited on its bridges. The simulation confirmed that the MHP displayed good thermal isolation properties (Fig. 1). The MHP temperature was found to reach 550 °C at 5V. Moreover, the power consumption of the MHP approximately corresponded to 13.9 mW for heating to 300 °C, which is comparable with the power consumption reported in the previous studies. Furthermore, a stable operation under a constant voltage was observed for 100 min.

Owing to the thick SU-8 layer, the MHP does not need the strict control of the stress that occurs inside the membrane during the fabrication process. This feature, together with the good thermal isolation property, enables the flexible layout design of the chip, and therefore, the MHP is beneficial to a miniature smart gas sensor chip. The researchers will advance their study to realize such smart gas sensors.


Filed Under: Materials • advanced

 

Related Articles Read More >

Self-lubricating and wear-resistant: igus bar stock for food, continuous operation and high media resistance
Minnesota Rubber and Plastics announces plans for new Innovation Center
The importance of resin selection
EXE014 - Image 1
Composite materials help place Italian race team in pole position

DESIGN GUIDE LIBRARY

“motion

Enews Sign Up

Motion Control Classroom

Design World Digital Edition

cover

Browse the most current issue of Design World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading design engineering magazine today.

EDABoard the Forum for Electronics

Top global problem solving EE forum covering Microcontrollers, DSP, Networking, Analog and Digital Design, RF, Power Electronics, PCB Routing and much more

EDABoard: Forum for electronics

Sponsored Content

  • Global supply needs drive increased manufacturing footprint development
  • How to Increase Rotational Capacity for a Retaining Ring
  • Cordis high resolution electronic proportional pressure controls
  • WAGO’s custom designed interface wiring system making industrial applications easier
  • 10 Reasons to Specify Valve Manifolds
  • Case study: How a 3D-printed tool saved thousands of hours and dollars

Design World Podcasts

May 17, 2022
Another view on additive and the aerospace industry
See More >
Engineering Exchange

The Engineering Exchange is a global educational networking community for engineers.

Connect, share, and learn today »

Design World
  • Advertising
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Manage your Design World Subscription
  • Subscribe
  • Design World Digital Network
  • Engineering White Papers
  • LEAP AWARDS

Copyright © 2022 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Design World

  • Home
  • Technologies
    • 3D CAD
    • Electronics • electrical
    • Fastening & Joining
    • Factory automation
    • Linear Motion
    • Motion Control
    • Test & Measurement
    • Sensors
    • Fluid power
  • Learn
    • Ebooks / Tech Tips
    • Engineering Week
    • Future of Design Engineering
    • MC² Motion Control Classrooms
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
  • LEAP AWARDS
  • Leadership
    • 2022 Voting
    • 2021 Winners
  • Design Guide Library
  • Resources
    • 3D Cad Models
      • PARTsolutions
      • TraceParts
    • Digital Issues
      • Design World
      • EE World
    • Women in Engineering
  • Supplier Listings