Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) is a big name for tiny devices that will soon make big changes in everyday life and the workplace. These and other types of Microsystems range in size from a few millimeters to a few microns, much smaller than a human hair. These Microsystems have the capability to enable new ways to solve problems in commercial applications ranging from automotive, aerospace, telecommunications, manufacturing equipment, medical diagnostics to robotics, and in national security applications such as nuclear weapons safety and security, battlefield intelligence, and protection against chemical and biological weapons. This broad range of applications of Microsystems reflects the broad capabilities of future Microsystems to provide the ability to sense, think, act, and communicate, all in a single integrated package. Microsystems have been called the next silicon revolution, but like many revolutions, they incorporate more elements than their predecessors. Microsystems do include MEMS components fabricated from polycrystalline silicon processed using techniques similar to those used in the manufacture of integrated electrical circuits. They also include optoelectronic components made from gallium arsenide and other semiconducting compounds from the III-V groups of the periodic table. Microsystems components are also being made from pure metals and metal alloys using the LIGA process, which utilizes lithography, etching, and casting at the micron scale. Generically, Microsystems are micron scale, integrated systems that have the potential to combine the ability to sense light, heat, pressure, acceleration, vibration, and chemicals with the ability to process the collected data using CMOS circuitry, execute an electrical, mechanical, or photonic response, and communicate either optically or with microwaves.
