Process for manufacturing an apparatus that protects features during the removal of sacrificial materials

Abstract

The present invention provides a process for manufacturing an apparatus. The process, in one embodiment, includes providing a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) device, the micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) device including an actuator coupled to a movable feature, sacrificial material fixing the actuator and movable feature with respect to one another, and a layer of material located over the actuator, movable feature and sacrificial material. The process may further include removing only a portion of the layer of material to expose the sacrificial material, and subjecting the exposed sacrificial material to an etchant to release the movable feature.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.