Process for forming a porous silicon member in a crystalline silicon member
US6004450A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 30, 1998 |
| Grant date | Dec 21, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 30, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S977/888
- WIPO fieldChemical engineering
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
Fabrication and use of porous silicon structures to increase surface area of heated reaction chambers, electrophoresis devices, and thermopneumatic sensor-actuators, chemical preconcentrates, and filtering or control flow devices. In particular, such high surface area or specific pore size porous silicon structures will be useful in significantly augmenting the adsorption, vaporization, desorption, condensation and flow of liquids and gasses in applications that use such processes on a miniature scale. Examples that will benefit from a high surface area, porous silicon structure include sample preconcentrators that are designed to adsorb and subsequently desorb specific chemical species from a sample background; chemical reaction chambers with enhanced surface reaction rates; and sensor-actuator chamber devices with increased pressure for thermopneumatic actuation of integrated membranes. Examples that benefit from specific pore sized porous silicon are chemical/biological filters and thermally-activated flow devices with active or adjacent surfaces such as electrodes or heaters.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.