Examine to enhance the mechanical sustainability of thin-film structures

申请人建议开发一种创新的、具有成本效益的单片式微型机电系统(MEMS)，通过实现原位高分辨率成像系统(包括扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和透射电子显微镜(TEM))的定量机械表征，来加速基于超薄膜的应用程序向市场的转移。随着硅基创新几乎达到其物理极限，这类薄膜/超薄膜结构(即二维材料(2DM))是最有前途的替代构建块之一，因为它们具有支持包括增强现实(AR)、自动驾驶汽车(AV)和物联网(IoT)在内的一系列颠覆性技术的下一代电子设备(如光电探测器、场效应管、太阳能电池)的优异物理性能。到2028年，基于2 DM的设备的市场规模预计将达到203亿美元，复合年增长率(CAGR)为15%以上。虽然奇异的实验室规模的2 DM设备已经被证明具有前所未有的性能，但在将它们转移到市场之前，关键的一步是确保它们的性能一致性。然而，评估超薄和精细的2 DM基器件的性能比基于硅基的器件更具挑战性，特别是在需要动态加载到纳米薄膜的情况下，评估它们的机械可持续性。在我们先前开发的基础上，我们建议开发一种新型的单片式MEMS，专门用于原位扫描电子显微镜/透射电子显微镜的2 DM薄膜的机械表征，其生产成本可以显著低于市场上的独角兽产品。基于MEMS的系统还可以方便地调整为能够表征2 DM设备的其他属性(例如，电、机电、热等)。未来将成为基于2 DM的设备的“万用表”。预计2028年基于2 DM的设备测试设备的市场规模约为22亿美元，这使得我们的工作对加拿大主要分销商(日立)、MEMS制造商(C2MI)和最终用户(UofT)具有吸引力。

The applicant proposes to develop an innovative and cost-effective monolithic micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) to accelerate the transfer of ultrathin film-based applications to the marketplace by enabling quantitative mechanical characterizations in situ high-resolution imaging systems, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). As silicon-based innovations have almost reached their physical limitations, the class of thin/ultra-thin film structures (i.e., two-dimensional materials (2DM)) is one of the most promising alternative building blocks due to their superior physical properties for next-generation electronics (e.g., photodetectors, field-effect transistors, solar cells) to support a range of disruptive technologies including augmented reality (AR), autonomous vehicles (AV) and Internet of Things (IoT). The market size of 2DM-based devices is projected to $203 billion by 2028 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15+%. While exotic lab-scale 2DM devices have been demonstrated with unprecedented performance, a critical step before they can be transferred to the marketplace is to assure their consistency in performance. However, it is much more challenging to evaluate the performance of ultrathin and delicate 2DM-based than silicon-based devices, especially the evaluation of their mechanical sustainability where dynamic loading to the nanofilms is required. Based on our previous development, we are proposing to develop a novel monolithic MEMS tailored for mechanical characterizations of 2DM films in situ SEM/TEM, which can be produced at a significantly lower cost than the unicorn product on the market. The MEMS-based system can also be conveniently adapted to enable characterizations of other properties of 2DM devices (e.g., electrical, mechano-electrical, thermal, etc.) in the future to work as a 'multi-meter' for 2DM-based devices. The estimated market size of testing equipment for 2DM-based devices is projected to be ~$2.2 billion in 2028, which made our work attractive to major Canadian distributors (Hitachi), MEMS manufacturers (C2MI), and end-users (UofT).