Publications

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Present methods of air sampling for low concentrations of chemicals like explosives and bioagents involve noisy and power hungry collectors with mechanical parts for moving large volumes of air. However there are biological systems that are capable of detecting very low concentrations of molecules with no mechanical moving parts. An example is the silkworm moth antenna which is a highly branched structure where each of 100 branches contains about 200 sensory 'hairs' which have dimensions of 2 microns wide by 100 microns long. The hairs contain about 3000 pores which is where the gas phase molecules enter the aqueous (lymph) phase for detection. Simulations of diffusion of molecules indicate that this 'forest' of hairs is 'designed' to maximize the extraction of the vapor phase molecules. Since typical molecules lose about 4 decades in diffusion constant upon entering the liquid phase, it is important to allow air diffusion to bring the molecule as close to the 'sensor' as possible. The moth acts on concentrations as low as 1000 molecules per cubic cm. (one part in 1e16). A 3-D collection system of these dimensions could be fabricated by micromachining techniques available at Sandia. This LDRD addresses the issues involved with extracting molecules from air onto micromachined structures and then delivering those molecules to microsensors for detection.

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This LDRD is aimed to place Sandia at the forefront of GaN-based technologies. Two important themes of this LDRD are: (1) The demonstration of novel GaN-based devices which have not yet been much explored and yet are coherent with Sandia's and DOE's mission objectives. UV optoelectronic and piezoelectric devices are just two examples. (2) To demonstrate front-end monolithic integration of GaN with Si-based microelectronics. Key issues pertinent to the successful completion of this LDRD have been identified to be (1) The growth and defect control of AlGaN and GaN, and (2) strain relief during/after the heteroepitaxy of GaN on Si and the separation/transfer of GaN layers to different wafer templates.

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A four-channel surface acoustic wave (SAW) chemical sensor array with associated RF electronics is monolithically integrated onto one GaAs IC. The sensor operates at 690 MHz from an on-chip SAW based oscillator and provides simple DC voltage outputs by using integrated phase detectors. This sensor array represents a significant advance in microsensor technology offering miniaturization, increased chemical selectivity, simplified system assembly, improved sensitivity, and inherent temperature compensation.

Monolithic, integrated acoustic wave chemical microsensors are being developed on gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrates. With this approach, arrays of microsensors and the high frequency electronic components needed to operate them reside on a single substrate, increasing the range of detectable analytes, reducing overall system size, minimizing systematic errors, and simplifying assembly and packaging. GaAs is employed because it is both piezoelectric, a property required to produce the acoustic wave devices, and a semiconductor with a mature microelectronics fabrication technology. Many aspects of integrated GaAs chemical sensors have been investigated, including: surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors; monolithic SAW delay line oscillators; GaAs application specific integrated circuits (ASIC) for sensor operation; a hybrid sensor array utilizing these ASICS; and the fully monolithic, integrated SAW array. Details of the design, fabrication, and performance of these devices are discussed. In addition, the ability to produce heteroepitaxial layers of GaAs and aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) makes possible micromachined membrane sensors with improved sensitivity compared to conventional SAW sensors. Micromachining techniques for fabricating flexural plate wave (FPW) and thickness shear mode (TSM) microsensors on thin GaAs membranes are presented and GaAs FPW delay line and TSM resonator performance is described.

A portable, autonomous, hand-held chemical laboratory ({micro}ChemLab{trademark}) is being developed for trace detection (ppb) of chemical warfare (CW) agents and explosives in real-world environments containing high concentrations of interfering compounds. Microfabrication is utilized to provide miniature, low-power components that are characterized by rapid, sensitive and selective response. Sensitivity and selectivity are enhanced using two parallel analysis channels, each containing the sequential connection of a front-end sample collector/concentrator, a gas chromatographic (GC) separator, and a surface acoustic wave (SAW) detector. Component design and fabrication and system performance are described.

Microfabrication technology has been applied to the development of a miniature, multi-channel gas phase chemical laboratory that provides fast response, small size, and enhanced versatility and chemical discrimination. Each analysis channel includes a sample concentrator followed by a gas chromatographic separator and a chemically selective surface acoustic wave detector array to achieve high sensitivity and selectivity. The performance of the components, individually and collectively, is described. The design and performance of novel micromachined acoustic wave devices, with the potential for improved chemical sensitivity, are also described.

Using both wet and plasma etching, we have fabricated micro-channels in silicon substrates suitable for use as gas chromatography (GC) columns. Micro-channel dimensions range from 10 to 80 μm wide, 200 to 400 μm deep, and 10 cm to 100 cm long. Micro-channels 100 cm long take up as little as 1 cm2 on the substrate when fabricated with a high aspect ratio silicon etch (HARSE) process. Channels are sealed by anodically bonding Pyrex lids to the Si substrates. We have studied micro-channel flow characteristics to establish model parameters for system optimization. We have also coated these micro-channels with stationary phases and demonstrated GC separations. We believe separation performance can be improved by increasing stationary phase coating uniformity through micro-channel surface treatment prior to stationary phase deposition. To this end, we have developed microfabrication techniques to etch through silicon wafers using the HARSE process. Etching completely through the Si substrate facilitates the treatment and characterization of the micro-channel sidewalls, which dominate the GC physico-chemical interaction. With this approach, we separately treat the Pyrex lid surfaces that form the top and bottom surfaces of the GC flow channel.

High sensitivity acoustic wave chemical microsensors are being developed on GaAs substrates. These devices take advantage of the piezoelectric properties of GaAs as well as its mature microelectronics fabrication technology and nascent micromachining technology. The design, fabrication, and response of GaAs SAW chemical microsensors are reported. Functional integrated GaAs SAW oscillators, suitable for chemical sensing, have been produced. The integrated oscillator requires 20 mA at 3 VK, operates at frequencies up to 500 MHz, and occupies approximately 2 mmz. Discrete GaAs sensor components, including IC amplifiers, SAW delay lines, and IC phase comparators have been fabricated and tested. A temperature compensation scheme has been developed that overcomes the large temperature dependence of GaAs acoustic wave devices. Packaging issues related to bonding miniature flow channels directly to the GaAs substrates have been resolved. Micromachining techniques for fabricating FPW and TSM microsensors on thin GaAs membranes are presented and GaAs FPW delay line performance is described. These devices have potentially higher sensitivity than existing GaAs and quartz SAW sensors.

We describe the design and operation of an optical fiber accelerometer intended for environments inhospitable to electronic components. An overview of the device is presented along with descriptions of the optical, electronic, and mechanical components. The performance of the current prototype is equivalent to state of the art piezoelectric accelerometers. Improvements to the current design are discussed.