Infineon Technologies Ag

Athanasios Kollias

Andreas Wiesbauer

Marc Fueldner

Christian Jenkner

Matthias Friedrich Herrmann

Bernhard Winkler

Christian Ebner

Michael Stadler

Daniel Neumaier

Alessandro Caspani

Gunar Lorenz

Stephan Mechnig

Ernesto Romani

Joseph Hufschmitt

Alessandra Fusco

Alexander Joebstl

Ilie Poenaru

Mario Alejandro Zotes

A sensor arrangement includes a substrate having a through opening between a first and a second main surface region, a sound transducing portion at the first main surface region of the substrate and spanning the through opening in the substrate, and a pressure sensing portion at the first main surface region of the substrate and fluidically coupled to the through opening in the substrate. The sound transducing portion includes a deflectable membrane structure, and a counter electrode. The pressure sensing portion includes a first and second rigid electrode and a deflectable membrane structure. The deflectable membrane structure of the pressure sensing portion opposes the plane of the first main surface region of the substrate. The first and second rigid electrodes of the pressure sensor form a reference capacitor of the pressure sensor, and the second rigid electrode and the membrane structure form a sense capacitor of the pressure sensor.

Sensor arrangement

A triple-membrane MEMS device includes a first membrane, a second membrane and a third membrane spaced apart from one another, wherein the second membrane is between the first membrane and the third membrane, a sealed low pressure chamber between the first membrane and the third membrane, a first stator and a second stator in the sealed low pressure chamber, and a signal processing circuit configured to read-out output signals of the triple-membrane MEMS device.

Signal processing circuit for triple-membrane MEMS device

A system includes a first membrane, a second membrane and a third membrane spaced apart from one another, wherein the second membrane is between the first membrane and the third membrane, and the second membrane comprises a plurality of openings, a sealed low pressure chamber between the first membrane and the third membrane, and a plurality of electrodes in the sealed low pressure chamber.

Triple-membrane MEMS device

Pressure sensors include stacking of sensor capacitors on top of reference capacitors. A pressure cavity may be extended below a bottom electrode. The pressure sensors may include a mechanical link of a top membrane with the bottom electrode in order to form a dual membrane, or a mechanical link of the top membrane, the bottom electrode and an intermediate electrode within a cavity. A pressure sensor includes a first and second pressure sensing portions, each including a first and second rigid electrodes, and a deflectable membrane structure. The second rigid electrode is between the first rigid electrode and the deflectable membrane structure arranged in a vertical configuration. The first and second rigid electrodes of the first and second pressure sensing portions form respective reference capacitors, and the second rigid electrodes and the deflectable membrane structures form respective sensing capacitors.

Fully differential capacitive pressure sensor including stacked sensor and reference capacitors

A controller for an environmental sensor provides digital environmental measurement values from analog environmental measurements performed by analog circuitry, the digital environmental measurement values lying in a global scale range. The controller subjects the global scale range to a subdivision into scale subranges that are proper subranges of the global scale range. The controller selects, among the scale subranges, one scale subrange in which an analog environmental measurement is to be performed, selects an offset information and a gain information that are associated with the selected scale subrange and that are indicative of an offset and a gain to be applied by the analog circuitry to perform an analog environmental measurement in the selected scale subrange, and to provide the offset information and the gain information to the analog circuitry.

Environmental sensor

In accordance with an embodiment, a sensor includes: a signal source with a first signal source terminal and a second signal source terminal; a bridge circuit connected to the first and second signal source terminals, the bridge circuit including: a first branch including: a first reference impedance element; and a first sensor impedance element configured to transduce a magnitude to be measured into a first impedance-related parameter; and a second branch including: a second reference impedance element; and a second sensor impedance element configured to transduce the magnitude to be measured into a second sensor impedance-related parameter.

Sensor with multiple modes or ranges

An embodiment includes a method of performing a measurement using a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) device that includes a plurality of MEMS sensors having different resonant frequencies. The method includes applying an excitation signal to a first port of the MEMS device such that each of the plurality of the MEMS sensors is stimulated by the excitation signal. The method further includes measuring a signal at a second port of the MEMS device and determining a measured value based on the measuring the signal.

Growing community of inventors

Munich, Germany

Athanasios Kollias