Leadless SiC Pressure Sensors for High Temperature Applications - 47th IIS 2001

About

SiC material, because of its wide bandgap (3 eV) and high-breakdown electric field (2.5X106 Vcm-1), exhibits excellent thermal and electrical characteristics at high
temperatures (1,2,3). Silicon carbide (SiC) sensors capable of operation at 1000°F have been fabricated in Kulite under NASA Glenn sponsorship. Previous work has demonstrated that these transducers exceed the physical limits of silicon technology for temperatures in excess of 1000°F (4). The present work reports on preliminary results of a leadless SiC transducer. The leadless technology, introduced and patented by Kulite, optimizes the benefits of SiC as a high temperature material by: 1) allowing the sensor to be mounted in a matter that eliminates bond wires and 2) provides hermetic protection to the side where the piezoresistive sensing elements and the contact pads are located. Only the inert SiC material on the diaphragm side of the sensor is exposed to the pressure medium during sensing. The leadless technology was developed for, and successfully utilized in, the silicon-on-oxide sensors for the last few years and has been shown to be superior to prior construction methods for high temperatures and high vibration (5,6).

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