MEMS and Microstructures in Aerospace Applications

Book excerpt: The promise of MEMS for aerospace applications has been germinating for years, and current advances bring the field to the very cusp of fruition. Reliability is chief among the challenges limiting the deployment of MEMS technologies in space, as the requirement of zero failure during the mission is quite stringent for this burgeoning field. MEMS and Microstructures in Aerospace Applications provides all the necessary tools to overcome these obstacles and take MEMS from the lab bench to beyond the exosphere. The book begins with an overview of MEMS development and provides several demonstrations of past and current examples of MEMS in space. From this platform, the discussion builds to fabrication technologies; the effect of space environmental factors on MEMS devices; and micro technologies for space systems, instrumentation, communications, thermal control, guidance navigation and control, and propulsion. Subsequent chapters explore factors common to all of the described systems, such as MEMS packaging, handling and contamination control, material selection for specific applications, reliability practices for design and application, and assurance practices. Edited and contributed by an outstanding team of leading experts from industry, academia, and national laboratories, MEMS and Microstructures in Aerospace Applications illuminates the path toward qualifying and integrating MEMS devices and instruments into future space missions and developing innovative satellite systems.