DelfMEMS and KFM Technology announce collaboration in RF MEMS packaging

LILLE & ORSAY, FRANCE: DelfMEMS and KFM Technology signed a common agreement to combine their expertise in RadioFrequency – RF - Micro-Electro-Mechanical Switches - MEMS - and Thin Film Packaging - TFP - technology. They are collaborating to enable DelfMEMS providing a low cost and very efficient RF MEMS technology platform and related products for mobile applications.

Since 2006, DelfMEMS and KFM Technology have respectively developed a patents portfolio concerning a innovative anchorless micro-mechanical devices dedicated to RF applications and a new approach to provide Thin Film Packaging/transferable high-Q passives.

DelfMEMS proposes a new integrated micro-mechanical building block that is based on a strong, totally new IP portfolio that solves past issues and substantially improves hot switching behavior, switching time (<1μs), and power consumption (12V actuation voltage, electrostatic). DelfMEMS develops a technology platform enabling its customers to increase bandwidth while minimizing cost, size, and consumption through technology integration or products.

KFM Technology provides collective encapsulation of components and MicroElectroMechanical Systems at the wafer-level (wafer-level packaging). Its R&D works aims to develop a technology of single-wafer packaging using the transfer of a polymer or metallic thin film microcap and its sealing around the device. Contrary to conventional MEMS assemblies techniques, this technology offers a total flexibility. It adapts to most constraints imposed by users and, by its collective and eventually re-usable approach, it significantly reduces fabrication costs.

The two companies enter a new step to combine both technologies. R&D teams will commonly adapt the packaging design according to the switch configuration, and will optimize the through packaging vias for RF performances. The innovative packaging combines the advantages of Wafer Level Packaging -such as low cost- with those of TFP such as small size, small thickness, higher frequency range -lower parasitic capacitance-, high integration and overmolding capability.

By using this technology, DelfMEMS does not need to change its MEMS process or to develop specific release/cleaning steps.

“Thin Film Packaging is a crucial point of our roadmap. We have investigated all MEMS packaging solutions. It has been a while to find such a technology fitting with all mobile market expectations : size & thickness, cost, integration, overmolding and performances.” explains Olivier Millet, CEO of DelfMEMS. “We have licenses from KFM Technology and are now collaborating to decrease the time-to-market. DelfMEMS had a disruptive RF MEMS technology, we are now going to have a doubly disruptive solution thanks to this partnership ”.

“Our Packaging Technology is extremely flexible, can provide almost any shape with any material on any substrate like Silicon, Glass...etc... This substrate could be also flexible like Kapton for example” says Martial Desgeorges, CEO of KFM Technology. "You can do much more interesting objects than Packages which is a particular function, our technology permits an easy and flexible 3D film tranfers to obtain low cost 3D objects" explains Fabrice Verjus, CTO of KFM Technology.

The last but not the least, combination of both technologies will enable DelfMEMS to provide packaged MEMS switches, fixed capacitors and high-Q inductors on the same chip, without modifying the fabrication process. A first step to propose high added value sub-systems with a MEMS switching technology platform.