An automated in-situ contact evaluation (ICE) system for MEMS/NEMS electrical contact material evaluation

Abstract

An automated in-situ electrical contact evolution (ICE) apparatus is described, the system allows the study of electrical contact performance at low contact force (<2 mN) MEMS/NEMS switching applications. The ICE system is built around a granite metrology frame and combines the controlled switching of surfaces with the ability to measure surface wear.
This is achieved using a high precision motion system to move between the switching and the surface measuring positions. The surface is measured using a confocal optical sensor to provide a measurement of 3D surface wear. In
this paper we describe an improved ICE system with the ability to measure both static contact force and dynamic force during the switching process. A key requirement of the new system is the ability to measure adhesion forces between
opening contacts. In this study a Gold coated hemisphere (radius 1 mm) is used with a Gold Coated (500 nm), multiwalled forest of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (50 µm), referred to as Au/CNT. The system has been designed to allow a range of contact materials to be tested, providing a unique testing platform that combines the evaluation of switching performance and contact resistance measurement with the ability to monitor surface wear.

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ORCID for John McBride: orcid.org/0000-0002-3024-0326

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