Li, Zhenhao2017-01-122017-01-122017-01-122017-01-06http://hdl.handle.net/10012/11167Capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) can be used for medical imaging, non-destructive testing or medical treatment applications. It can also be used as gravimetric sensors for gas sensing or immersion bio-sensing. Although various CMUT fabrication methods have been reported, there are still many challenges to address. Conventional fabrication methods can be categorized as either surface micromachining or the wafer bonding method. These methods have design trade-offs and limitations associated with process complexity, structural parameter optimization and wafer materials selection. For example, surface micromachining approaches can suffer from complicated fabrication processes. In addition, structural parameters cannot be fully optimized due to feasibility concerns during fabrication. In contrast, the development of wafer bonding techniques enabled CMUTs to be fabricated in a straightforward way and structural parameters can be easily optimized when compared with a surface micromachining approach. However, the yield of the traditional wafer bonded CMUTs is very sensitive to contaminations and the surface quality at the bonding interface. Although the difficulties of the wafer bonding process are not always reported, they definitely exist for every researcher who wants to fabricate their own CMUTs. As a result, this dissertation work aims to develop a CMUT fabrication process with fewer fabrication constraints, low-cost and low process temperature for CMOS integration. The developed CMUT fabrication processes reported in the thesis applied photosensitive polymer adhesive for wafer bonding in order to make a process with good tolerance to contaminations and defects on the wafer surface, present a wide range of material selection at the bonding interface and require low process temperature (less than 250°C). These features can benefit CMUT fabrication with increased yield better design flexibility and lower cost. Having maximum process temperature of 250°C, the developed processes can also be CMOS compatible. Furthermore, a novel CMUT structure, which can only be achieved by the reported technique, was developed showing more than doubled ultrasound receive sensitivity when compared with conventional CMUT structures. The fabrication processes were developed systematically and the details of process development will be presented in this thesis.enCapacitive Micromachined Ultrasonic TransducersBenzocyclobutenePhotosensitive AdhesiveAdhesive Wafer BondingDoctoral Thesis