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US 2003/0189622 A1Published application
Printhead having a thin film membrane with a floating section
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsMatthew D. Giere, Jeffery S. Hess, Ulrich E. Hess
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A printhead including a printhead substrate having at least one opening formed in a first surface to provide a fluid path through the substrate. The printhead further includes a thin film membrane formed on a second surface of the substrate. The thin film membrane includes a plurality of fluid ejection elements and has a floating section and a cantilevered section, which are detached and separated from one another by a gap.
Claims19
A printhead comprising:
- a printhead substrate having at least one opening formed in a first surface, the at least one opening providing a fluid path through the substrate;
- and
- a thin film membrane formed on a second surface of the substrate, the thin film membrane including a plurality of fluid ejection elements, the thin film membrane having a cantilevered section and a floating section, the floating section being at least partially detached from the cantilevered section and separated by a gap formed in the thin film membrane, the floating section being located over the at least one opening in the substrate, the cantilevered section being substantially supported by the substrate.
A method of fabricating a fluid ejector comprising:
- depositing a plurality of thin film layers on a first surface of a printhead substrate, the plurality of thin film layers forming a thin film membrane, at least one of the layers forming a plurality of fluid ejection elements;
- etching the printhead substrate to provide the thin film membrane with a cantilevered section;
- etching the plurality of thin film layers to provide the thin film membrane with a floating section, the floating section being at least partially detached from the cantilevered section;
- forming an orifice layer on the thin film membrane;
- forming at least one opening in a second surface of the substrate, the at least one opening providing a fluid path from the second surface through the substrate,
- wherein the orifice layer supports the floating section of the thin film membrane over the at least one opening in the substrate, the cantilevered section being substantially supported by the substrate.
3 more elements
A fluid ejector comprising:
- a substrate having at least one opening formed in a first surface, the at least one opening providing a fluid path through the substrate;
- and
- a thin film membrane formed on a second surface of the substrate, the thin film membrane including a plurality of fluid ejection elements, the thin film membrane having a cantilevered section and a floating section, the floating section being at least partially detached from the cantilevered section and separated by a gap formed in the thin film membrane, the floating section being located over the at least one opening in the substrate, the cantilevered section being substantially supported by the substrate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.