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Microtechnology Changing the World Little by Little 22 | Northwest Science & Technology | Winter 2004 TECHNOLOGY Microtechnology Changing the world little by little n 1959, theoretical physicist Richard Feynman “microtechnology” or “nanotechnology” in his talk, was the first to explain the potential of small- they are the small-scale technologies of which he scale technology. spoke. I “I would like to describe a field, in which The idea of nanotechnology—engineering de- little has been done, but in which an enormous vices on the scale of atoms and molecules— has cap- amount can be done in principle,” said the Caltech tured the imagination of scientists, engineers, and professor in a now famous talk entitled “There’s the public. Plenty of Room at the Bottom.” But for all of its high-tech promise, nanotech- The Nomad System allows “What I want to talk about is the problem of nology is still far from practical implementation. its user to view plans, manipulating and controlling things on a small Rather, it is microtechnology that is having an im- scale,” he said to members of the American Physical mediate effect on our lives through new products diagrams, and procedures Society. “In the year 2000, when they look back at and processes, from air bag sensors to computers. while keeping hands this age, they will wonder why it was not until the Researchers throughout the Northwest at uni- year 1960 that anybody began seriously to move in versities, government labs, and companies are ac- completely free to this direction.” tively involved in developing new micro- Fast-forward to 2004, and devices dependent technologies and pushing back the frontiers of the manipulate tools. on small-scale technologies are firmly embedded in field. And they are exploring the interface where Photo: Microvision our lives. Though Feynman didn’t use the terms micro meets nano. by Jeff Wolfe Northwest Science & Technology | Winter 2004 | 23 TECHNOLOGY ton (UW) campus. Its tory has been used by a number of compa- mission is to stimulate nies conducting microtechnology research. growth in the state by One such company is Neah Power Systems helping Washington of Bothell, Wash. companies develop An emerging leader in micro fuel cell commercially viable technology, Neah Power is developing a sili- technology. The cen- con-based micro fuel cell that is nearing the ter provides compa- marketplace and has the potential to replace nies with access to the batteries used in consumer devices such technical expertise, as laptops and cell phones. Because of this funding for company potential, the company received a $2-mil- projects jointly with lion grant from the Advanced Technology universities, and access Program of the National Institute of Stan- to microfabrication fa- dards and Technology in September of 2003 cilities, among other to further the development of the fuel cell. services. Using techniques developed in the semi- The most com- conductor industry, researchers at Neah mon examples of Power etch millions of microscopic pores microtechnology can into a piece of silicon 400 microns thick. It be found in micro- is in these millions of pores where the chemi- electronics, which in- cal reaction between oxygen and a hydro- clude computer chips gen-based fuel, such as methanol, takes place and most modern to generate electricity. electronic compo- Neah Power officials believe the micro nents. However, a fuel cell will be able to provide more energy type of microtech- for longer periods of time than conventional nology that combines batteries while taking up the equivalent micron- sized electrical space. And while batteries take time to re- Two Microvision researchers use equipment in the WTC’s and mechanical parts charge, Neah Power’s fuel cell can be in- Microfabrication Laboratory to develop a MEMS device. Photo: WTC is now experiencing stantly “recharged” by simply replenishing growing commercial the fuel cartridge. Microtechnology involves the use of use. Called microelectromechanical systems Another WTC client is Microvision, a objects at the micron level, or one-millionth (MEMS), they have already enjoyed success leader in the photonics industry that is also of a meter. Nanotechnology entails the use as air bag sensors, inkjet print heads, and based in Bothell, Wash. [NWS&T, Autumn of objects a thousand times smaller, or one- the read/write heads of hard drives over the 2003, p.20]. Microvision’s patented MEMS billionth of a meter. While microns are used last ten years, says Ritala. devices, in which optical surfaces and small to measure biological cells, like red blood A MEMS accelerometer developed by hinges are formed on a silicon chip roughly cells, nanometers are used to measure mol- Albert Leung, engineering professor at one fourth the size of a dime, have enabled ecules. It’s like comparing the distance of a Simon Fraser University (SFU), Burnaby, B. the development of a number of products trip across the country to a trip to the local C., is garnering increasing commercial at- with mobile display and imaging applications. grocery store. tention due to its numerous applications and Microtechnologies are built using a top- low production cost. The thumbnail-sized down approach that uses techniques devel- accelerometer is said to be more robust than oped mostly in the semiconductor industry, competitive devices and can be manufac- explains Keith Ritala, manager of laborato- tured cheaply using techniques developed in ries and new technologies at the Washing- the semiconductor industry. Currently, ton Technology Center. MEMSIC, Inc. of Andover, Mass., is com- “It’s called a top-down approach be- mercializing Leung’s invention and has built cause a solid block of something, usually sili- a facility in China capable of producing 20 con, is selectively etched or built up into the million accelerometers per month. Leung needed structures,” says Ritala. “The pro- says the accelerometer could be used in a cess goes from large to small.” variety of products, such as car alarms, earth- The Washington Technology Center quake monitors, vehicle rollover sensors, and (WTC) is a science and technology organi- toys. A Harry Potter wand that utilizes the Less than 10 microns wide, this pore and the mil- lions around it enclose the chemical reaction that zation funded by the State of Washington and accelerometer is expected to hit stores in 2004. generates electricity in Neah Power’s silicon-based headquartered on the University of Washing- The WTC’s Microfabrication Labora- micro fuel cell. Photo: Neah Power 24 | Northwest Science & Technology | Winter 2004 Microvision’s Nomad Augmented Vi- sion System is able to project an image from a source, such as a computer or video cam- era, through the viewer’s pupil onto the retina. The image is created as the MEMS device paints as many as 30 million pixels per second onto the retina using a low-in- tensity light beam. In this way, the Nomad System superimposes high-contrast, high- resolution images on its user’s view of the surrounding environment. In October of 2003, the American Honda Motor Company announced plans to supply their dealers and technicians with Nomad Systems as early as 2004. Because the system can overlay automobile diagnos- tics and repair instructions directly on a technician’s vision, Honda believes it will increase the efficiency and accuracy of tech- nicians performing complex repairs. Other applications reported by Microvision for the Nomad Augmented Vi- sion System include the positioning and alignment of surgical tools for surgeons, navigation and mapping for security person- nel and military troops, and wearable dis- plays for pilots. Microtechnology’s alphabet soup: MEMS, MICROCATS, and MECS A considerable portion of the work in microtechnology is aimed at computers or MEMS devices, says Kevin Drost, associate The 18-ounce Nomad System uses a MEMS device to superimpose high-contrast, high-resolution images professor at Oregon State University (OSU), on its user’s view of the surrounding environment. Photo: Microvision Corvallis. Many of these devices are sensors, one way or another collecting and process- about it,” says Drost. “The idea of MECS intermetallics, and metals such as aluminum ing information, says Drost. and MICROCATS is to extend microscale and stainless steel are used to manufacture In contrast, two other applications of devices out of the electronics world.” MECS and MICROCATS. But because the microtechnology, abbreviated MECS and The extension of microtechnology into fabrication technologies for these materials MICROCATS, process mass and energy. haven’t been around as long as those for sili- These devices may be used, for example, as processing mass and energy has required con, they are not as well developed. “Con- biosensors, chemical reactors, fuel processors, some fundamental changes in the way or cooling systems. microtechnologies are manufactured. Ever In January 2003, the Pacific Northwest since the semiconductor industry started National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, using silicon instead of germanium 50 years Wash., and OSU teamed up to create the ago, silicon has been the foundation on Microproducts Breakthrough Institute which most microtechnologies are built. (MBI), of which Drost serves as co-director. However, because energy and chemical The Institute combines PNNL’s re- systems can have potentially high tempera- search in microchemical and thermal systems tures or chemically aggressive environments, (MICROCATS) with OSU’s micro energy silicon often can’t be used, says Landis chemical and biological systems (MECS) Kannberg, co-director of the MBI and se- research. nior program manager at PNNL. Because they produce very high rates of heat and “What we’re trying to do at the MBI is “Silicon is just too brittle and cracks too mass transfer, microchannels 10-100 microns thick are the key to a number of technologies being de- process mass and energy in large enough easily,” says Drost. veloped by the Microproducts Breakthrough Insti- volumes that we in the macro world care As a result, plastics, ceramics, glasses, tute.
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