Method of depositing nanotwinned nickel-molybdenum-tungsten alloys

Unmet Need
Metal MEMS devices would be very useful in extreme environments and especially at elevated temperatures, where potential future applications include: micro power generation, high frequency switches and sensors, and digital monitoring and control of residential and commercial components in what is often referred to as the “Internet of Things”. Such devices are not yet available, because these applications demand the development of advanced materials with greater strength, density, electrical and thermal conductivity, dimensional stability, and microscale manufacturability.

Technology Overview
The present invention is directed to the synthesis of metallic nickel-molybdenum-tungsten films with direct current sputter deposition. These films exhibit linear-elastic mechanical behavior and tensile strengths exceeding 3 GPa, which is unprecedented for materials that are compatible with wafer-level device fabrication processes. These films also possess exceptional thermal and mechanical stability, high density, and electrical properties that are attractive for next generation metal MEMS applications.

Stage of Development
Next stage is to manufacture simple MEMS devices e.g. micro-cantilevers, with appropriate dimensional control and reliability, based on the newly developed metallic alloy.

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