Molecular-Scale Lubricants for Micromachine Applications: Final Report

The nature of this work was to develop the physics and chemistry base for understanding molecular-scale lubricants used to reduce of friction- and adhesion-induced failure in silicon micromachines (MEMS). We acquired this new knowledge by tailoring the molecular properties of the lubricants, applying local probes that can directly monitor the response of lubricants in contact conditions, and evaluating the performance of model lubricants MEMS devices. Model lubricants under investigation were the silane coupling agents that form monolayer films on native oxide silicon surfaces, which is the substrate in MEMS. These molecules bind via strong surface bonds and produce a layer of hydro- or fluoro-carbon chains normal to the substrate. "Tailoring" the lubricants entails modifying the chain length, the chain chemical reactivity (H or F), and the density of chain structures. Thus much effort went into understanding the surface chemistry of silane-silicon oxide coupling. With proximal probes such as atomic force microscopy (AFM), interracial force microscopy (FM), and shear force microscopy in combination with IFM, we examined the frictional and adhesive properties of the silane films with very high spatial resolution (< 100 nm) and sensitivity. MEMS structures are treated with silanes under identical conditions, and examined for friction and adhesion under operating conditions. Proper assessment of the lubricants required quantitative analysis of MEMS performance at high speeds and long operating times. Our proximal probe measurements and WS performance analyses form a very important link for future molecular dynamics simulations, that, in turn, should be able to predict MEMS performance under all conditions