Publications

IR Laser Welding of Thin Polymer Films as a Fabrication Method for Polymer MEMS
by William A. Beck, Michelle Huang, Joe Ketterl, Thayer Hughes - PDF, 4002 kb

A custom IR laser welding system is devised to weld thin metalized polymer films (mylar and PEN) to a glass substrate. Weld strength, measured using a custom pull-test system, is analyzed and discussed in terms of the welding conditions, with illustrated examples.

Plenary paper at Saratov Fall Meeting, Saratov, Russia, October, 2002; In SFM 2002: Laser Physics and Photonics, Spectroscopy, and Molecular Modeling III; Coherent Optics of Ordered and Random Media III, D. Zimnyakov et al, editors, Proc. of SPIE, Vol. 5067, p167-178. 2003

A Novel Flex Circuit Area-Array Interconnect System for a Catheter-Based Ultrasound Transducer
by Jeff Strole, Scott Corbett, Warren Lee*, Edward Light*, Stephen Smith* (*Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University) - PDF, 2620 kb

A novel, high density multi-layer flex circuit, used to interconnect a catheter-based two dimensional ultrasound transducer, is discussed, including details of the flex circuit architecture and fabrication methods developed for this challenging application.

Presented at IMAPS 2002, Denver, CO. (Best of Session Award) September 5th, 2002

Direct Write Exposure and Ablation of Photo-Resist in Fine Scale Interconnect Circuits
by William A. Beck, Jeff Strole, John Yarno, Thayer Hughes, Ben Ross - PDF, 710 kb

The development of UV laser direct write patterning of photo resist is discussed, including the trade-offs between photo resist exposure and photo resist ablation for fine scale flex circuit patterning with relation to the laser and material characteristics.

Invited paper at Saratov Fall Meeting, Saratov, Russia; In SFM 2000: Laser Physics and Photonics; and Spectroscopy and Molecular Modeling, V. Derbov et al, editors, Proc. of SPIE, Vol. 4243 (2001), p1-8. October 2000

A High-Density, Resin-Coated-Foil (RCF) Substrate Utilizing Mask and Direct-Write UV Laser Photolithography
by Scott Corbett, Edward Swenson*, Jeff Strole, Bill Beck, John Yarno, Thayer Hughes (*Electro-Scientific Corporation) - PDF, 396 kb

Fabrication of fine scale flexible circuits using a combination of conventional photolithography and direct write UV laser methods allows exploiting the advantages of each method to most efficiently fabricate a wide range of feature scales and geometries within the same circuit.

Presented at The International Conference and Exhibition on High Density Interconnect and Systems Packaging, Santa Clara, CA (Best of Session Award) April 20th, 2001

Advanced Multilayer Polyimide Substrate Utilizing UV Laser Microvia Technology
by Scott Corbett, Jeff Strole, Ben Ross, Phil Jordan, Joe Ketterl, Thayer Hughes - PDF, 710 kb

A multi-layer fine scale flexible circuit has been developed for interconnection of a two dimensional MEMS scale ultrasound transducer for medical imaging. Details of the novel flexible circuit architecture and fabrication methods developed for this application are discussed, both of which have been awarded patents. The use of liquid crystal polymer substrates (LCP) is also examined.

Presented at IMAPS 2000, Boston, MA September 2000

Recent Advances in Laser Micro-Machining
by William A. Beck - PDF, 1443 kb

The development of UV laser micro-machining methods is illustrated with applications from MEMS scale medical devices and flexible circuits. Particular attention is paid to delicate, thermally sensitive materials, including piezoelectric ceramics and single crystal perovskites, where a detailed understanding of material properties guides development of specialized laser micromachining methods.

Plenary paper at Saratov Fall Meeting, Saratov, Russia, October, 1999; In SFM '99: Laser Physics and Spectroscopy, V. Derbov et al, editors, Proc. of SPIE, Vol. 4002; p2-15 October 1999