Transient Thermal Bubble Formation on Polysilicon Micro-Resisters

Abstract

Transient bubble formation experiments are investigated on polysilicon micro-resisters having dimensions of 95 μm in length, 10 μm or 5 μm in width, and 0.5 μm in thickness. Micro resisters act as both resistive heating sources and temperature transducers simultaneously to measure the transient temperature responses beneath the thermal bubbles. The micro bubble nucleation processes can be classified into three groups depending on the levels of the input current. When the input current level is low, no bubble is nucleated. In the middle range of the input current, a single spherical bubble is nucleated with a waiting period up to 2 sec while the wall temperature can drop up to 8°C depending on the magnitude of the input current. After the formation of a thermal bubble, the resister temperature rises and reaches a steady state eventually. The bubble growth rate is found proportional to the square root of time that is similar to the heat diffusion controlled model as proposed in the macro scale boiling experiments. In the group of high input current, a single bubble is nucleated immediately after the current is applied. A first-order model is proposed to characterize the transient bubble nucleation behavior in the micro-scale and compared with experimental measurements.