Page 15 - An Introduction to Microelectromechanical Systems Engineering

xiv Foreword

Despite all the rosy news, there remain significant challenges facing the MEMS
field. One of these I call the challenge of the “500 MEMS Companies” and the other,
the “10,000 MEMS Designers.” For the field to fully take root and become ubiqui-
tous, there must be an unprecedented training of tens of thousands of MEMS engi-
neers. Already, the demand for MEMS experts has far outstripped the ability of
academia to train them. The only hope is for existing engineers to learn the basics of
MEMS and then go up the MEMS learning curve in the traditional way (i.e., learn-
ing by doing).
Here is where this book plays an important, essential role on the national stage.
Dr. Nadim Maluf has put together one of the finest MEMS primers that you may
find on the bookshelf today. Written in a no-nonsense, clear style, the book brings
the practicing engineer and student alike to an understanding of how MEMS are
designed and fabricated. Dr. Maluf’s book concentrates mostly on how to design
and manufacture MEMS. This is to be expected of Dr. Maluf, who has impeccable
MEMS credentials. Trained in MEMS for his Ph.D. at Stanford University, Dr.
Maluf has spent his postdoctoral career as a practicing MEMS engineer and man-
ager at Lucas NovaSensor, one of the early MEMS companies in the field. His indus-
trial career has been focused both on bringing MEMS products successfully to
market and on defending his company’s market share against encroachment by
other technologies. Because this book is written from Dr. Maluf’s practical perspec-
tive, this volume is sure to have lasting value to the myriad of engineers and execu-
tives who are struggling to find a way into the field of MEMS. This book also will
serve as a useful resource for those already in the field who wish to broaden their
expertise in MEMS fabrication. When I reviewed the manuscript, I was ready to
offer Dr. Maluf a great deal of suggestions and corrections. I was quite humbled to
realize that, instead, I was eager to have a copy of the new book on my own shelf. It
will serve as a reference for not only myself, but also the students and engineers who
frequently ask me, “What book should I buy to learn how to make MEMS?”

Albert (“Al”) P. Pisano, Ph.D.
MEMS Program Manager
DARPA