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S.H. Moseley (NASA/GSFC), R.K. Fettig (Raytheon ITSS/NASA/GSFC), J. Kuhn (NASA/GSFC), A.S. Kutyrev, M. Li (Raytheon ITSS/NASA/GSFC), D.B. Mott, D.S. Schwinger, R.P. Wesenberg, B.E. Woodgate (NASA/GSFC)
We are developing a two-dimensional array of microshutters that can be used as a high efficiency, high contrast field selection device for a multi-object spectrometer for the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST). The device is a close-packed array of randomly selectable shutters with a cell size of 100 microns square and area filling factor of about 80% produced in a 100 micrometer thick silicon wafer. Each shutter, made of silicon nitride with an appropriate optical coating, pivots on a torsion flexure along one edge. A CMOS circuit embedded in the frame around the shutters allows independent individual selection. An original double-shutter mechanism is employed for actuation. It has been tested on a small size three by three shutter array. Processing includes anisotropic back etching for wafer thinning, an Inductive Coupled Plasma (ICP) back etch through the silicon to the mechanical active nitride membrane and a Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) to produce the shutters out of the nitride membrane. The layout is based on a detailed mechanical analysis for which we determined crucial material parameters experimentally. Our current array size is 128x128. We expect to have working arrays by the end of this year.
This project has been supported by NASA grants.
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The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: kutyrev@gsfc.nasa.gov