The Exploration for an Appropriate Vacuum Level for Performance Enhancement of a Comb-Drive Microscanner

In order to identify the influence of the vacuum environment on the performance of a comb-drive microscanner, and indicate the optimum pressure for enhancing its performance, a comb-drive microscanner fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate was prepared and tested at different pressures, and the characteristics in vacuum were obtained. The test results revealed that the vacuum environment enhanced the performance in the optical scanning angle, and decreased the actuation voltage. With a 30 V driving voltage applied, the microscanner can reach an optical scanning angle of 44.3° at a pressure of 500 Pa. To obtain an enhancement in its properties, only a vacuum range from 100 to 1000 Pa is needed, which can be very readily and economically realized and maintained in a vacuum package.