Design, fabrication and characterization of laser patterned LTCC micro hotplate with stable interconnects for gas sensor platform

The present paper presents design, fabrication and characterization of low temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC)-based micro hotplates. Laser irradiation is used to pattern fired conductive paste over LTCC substrate to generate fine meander shaped heater patterns. These micro hotplates consumes low power (~ 500 mW for 300 °C) compared to standard alumina technology due to low thermal conductivity (3–4 W/(m-K) of LTCC substrate. This technology is inexpensive for small series compared production as compared to the silicon technology. The structuring ability of LTCC green tapes is utilized to provide dedicated through via-holes in micro hotplate design which lowers the thermal mass and helps in providing special fused electrical interconnects. These connections are found thermally stable and results are very promising. Thermal properties such as temperature distribution and power consumption have been investigated using FEM (Finite Element Method) simulations on COMSOL software.