IC sensors are an outgrowth of the piezoresistive properties of silicon discovered in the early days of solid state electronics at Bell Labs in the 1950s. Advances in the micro-machining of silicon throughout the Ô60s & Ô70s are widely known. Micromachining created a foundation for the rapid progress in the field in the Ô80s & Ô90s.
The technology was labeled MEMS Micro Electro Mechanical Systems—or mechanical integrated circuits. The developed micromachining skills along with the fabrication infrastructure investments provided fertile ground for the development of MEMS devices. In addition, MEMS R&D has enjoyed heavy support by many governments; especially in the US, Japan and Germany.
These investments paid off! By the1990s MEMS-based sensors and devices had progressed to being multi-billion dollar entities and competitions were global. Markets for products like auto pressure sensors and accelerometers passed the billion dollar mark as did printer ink jets and projector displays. The high-end 2003 autos may have as many as 14 pressure sensors and 11 inertial (acceleration & rate) sensors. From 1998 through 2001, venture capitalists invested more than $1 billion in MEMS-based companies.
The track record of performance and the opening of entirely new markets by MEMS sensors and devices has laid the groundwork for the next generation of devices known as nanotechnology. The US government has funded such developments to the tune of some $2 billion this past spring. Most nanotechnology applications are still years away but products showing promise include gene diagnostic and programming devices.
MEMS and nanotechnologies continue to progress. The burst of the Optical Bubble and the recent economic downturn has not slowed technical advances as much as it has changed business operations. Examples of such changes will be reported as case histories of several recent startups. Projections of future MEMS activities and markets will be presented.
DR. JANUSZ BRYZEK
Born and raised in Poland, Janusz Bryzek attended Warsaw Technical University receiving an MSEE in 1970 and his PhD in 1978. He had an early start with sensors working with technology transfer from Honeywell beginning in1970. Dr. Bryzek and his family arrived in the US in 1979 and he joined Foxboro ICT in Silicon Valley. With ICT, he was primarily responsible for the development (1981) of a disposable blood pressure sensor which is now a 20 million units per year market.
In 1982, Dr. Bryzek helped found Sensym and over the past 21 years; he has been a cofounder of five other startups applying advanced silicon sensing and MEMS technologies to new products. These companies were ICSensors, NovaSensor, Intelligent MicroSensor Technology, Transparent Networks, and currently, BN Ventures.
Along with his technical contributions, Dr. Bryzek has become an expert in the business aspects of MEMS devices and systems. He completed an Executive Management program at Stanford in 1987 and played a key role in a successful MEMS Awareness PR and marketing program initiated by NovaSensor with RGA. Dr. Bryzek helped produce an AAMI Disposable Blood Pressure Transducer Standard released in 1984; and served as a key subcommittee chair for the IEEE Std1451 for Interfacing Smart Transducers.
Dr. Bryzek is listed as a co-inventor for 30 patents; has written segments for three books; has published over 200 technical papers; and has chaired and made presentations at numerous international conferences and seminars. In 1994, he was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by Sensors Magazine. He serves as an Advisor to the Via, Inc Investment Bank and to ChipScale Magazine. He also evaluates potential startups for two venture capital companies.
Most recently, he organized Transparent Networks and led the development of a MOEMS (Micro-Optical Electromechanical Systems) product. This softball-size device is the first integrated single-chip 1200 3D mirror array for switching fiber optic signals for the telecommunications industry. The unit includes 4800 ultra-precise MEMS angular amplifiers along with 4800 15-bit D/A converters with 120 V output.
At BN Ventures, he is working on MEMS automotive pressure sensor and a gyroscope. The pressure sensor will feature 16-bit performance and wireless connectivity. Both products are expected to sell for less than $10 in quantity.
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