The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 29, 2001
Filed:
Sep. 08, 1998
Kenneth Meade Lakin, Redmond, OR (US);
TFR Technologies, Inc., Bend, OR (US);
Abstract
A thin-film piezoelectric resonator and method of fabrication that includes a barrier layer of material between the underlying electrode and a layer of piezoelectric material. For example, in a resonator that uses zinc oxide for the layer of piezoelectric material, a barrier layer of aluminum nitride is deposited upon an underlying aluminum electrode to protect the aluminum electrode from oxidation or structural deformation during the subsequent deposition of the piezoelectric layer of zinc oxide. The barrier layer of aluminum nitride is deposited in a manner so as to provide a substrate having a substantial degree of uniformity of crystal orientation upon which the layer of piezoelectric material may then be deposited in a manner such that the piezoelectric layer will, itself, also have a substantial degree of uniformity in the orientations of its crystals. The resonator includes a second electrode deposited upon the upper surface of the piezoelectric material or upon the upper surface of a second barrier layer of aluminum nitride that is deposited upon the upper surface of the piezoelectric layer.