Surface acoustic wave sensor assembly
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorChuang-Chia Lin
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for fabricating a sensor device that includes an integrated sensor assembly having a surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor disposed on a piezoelectric substrate. The SAW sensor is adapted to measure an environmental condition of an environment in response to an RF signal. The SAW sensor includes an interdigitated transducer (IDT) formed on a substrate having at least a layer of a piezoelectric material. The SAW sensor includes either one or more SAW reflectors of a second IDT formed on the piezoelectric material. The SAW sensor further includes an RF antenna, a matching circuit and a waveguide are formed on the piezoelectric material. The SAW sensor and the RF antenna are integrated with one another on the piezoelectric material.
Claims17
A method for fabricating a sensor device, comprising:
- fabricating a first integrated sensor assembly by:
- depositing a first conductive structure onto a piezoelectric substrate, the first conductive structure forming a radio frequency (RF) antenna,
- depositing a second conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the second conductive structure forming matching circuitry coupled to the RF antenna,
- depositing a third conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the third conductive structure forming a first interdigitated transducer (IDT) coupled to the RF antenna, wherein the first IDT is a component of a first surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor,
- depositing a fourth conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the fourth conductive structure forming a second IDT, and
- depositing a fifth conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the fifth conductive structure forming one or more waveguides disposed between the first IDT and the second IDT, the one or more waveguides comprising one or more planar conductors formed on a surface of the piezoelectric substrate and patterned to define an acoustic propagation path that maintains a SAW propagating between the first IDT and the second IDT.
A method for fabricating a sensor device, comprising:
- fabricating a first surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor on a piezoelectric substrate by:
- depositing a first conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the first conductive structure forming a first interdigitated transducer (IDT), the first IDT having a first arrangement of digits to generate a first SAW responsive to receiving a first radio frequency (RF) signal in a first frequency range, and
- depositing a second conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the second conductive structure forming matching circuitry coupled to a first RF antenna communicatively coupled to the first IDT;
- and
- fabricating a second SAW sensor on the piezoelectric substrate by:
- depositing a third conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the third conductive structure forming a second IDT, the second IDT having a second arrangement of digits,
- depositing a fourth conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the fourth conductive structure forming a second RF antenna communicatively coupled to the second IDT, and
- depositing a fifth conductive structure onto the piezoelectric substrate, the fifth conductive structure forming one or more waveguides disposed between the first IDT and the second IDT, the one or more waveguides comprising one or more planar conductors formed on a surface of the piezoelectric substrate and patterned to define an acoustic propagation path that maintains a SAW propagating between the first IDT and the second IDT.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.