MEMS Journal -- The Largest MEMS Publication in the World

An overview of emerging trends in MEMS packaging

by Maarten Vraanes
Director of Consulting Services, MEMS Journal                      

MEMS packaging, as the entire MEMS ecosystem, is rapidly evolving.  Technologies such as wafer level and 3D integration are becoming increasingly important.  In this article, we outline our observations about the current and future trends of MEMS integration and packaging.  Major trends focus on developing CMOS-compatible MEMS fabrication processes for monolithic integration, such as low-temperature wafer bonding.  Another emerging trend is die stacking in low-cost leadless type semiconductor packaging -- these types of techniques provide smaller footprint packages with lower unit costs for high production volumes.  Additionally, 3D integration enables the integration of LCR passives.  Here, LCR components are embedded into the package itself to minimize external passives and accommodate smaller footprint applications, wafer bonding and vertical intra-package connectors or interposers.  On the flip side, CMOS and 3D integration of MEMS devices pose challenges in modeling, testing, and reliability.

What's next for MEMS? Healthy growth but changing drivers

The MEMS industry saw healthy 10 percent growth in 2012, and can expect continued strong expansion for the foreseeable future, projects Yole Developpement. The firm sees continuing 12-13 percent compound annual growth -- doubling the sector’s revenues to $22 billion by 2018. But that stable growth masks plenty of change from sector to sector within the diverse MEMS industry, as the high-volume consumer business drives fast innovation cycles. Meanwhile, the market for ink jet heads is declining, but mobile markets look likely to starting to adopt new MEMS timing devices, RF devices, and even environmental sensors. Notably, the diverse higher value, lower volume, industrial market (which ranges from telecommunications to aerospace and defense)  will also match the consumer market’s ~12 percent growth rates, and medical MEMS markets will grow much faster at around 22 percent.