A new process for the fabrication of miniature Fabry Perot spectrometers

In this paper, we discuss the use of micromachining techniques and silicon microfabrication technology to create miniature, low cost replacements for conventional optical spectrometers. The unique aspect of our approach is that the spectrometer is created using two separate processes involving conventional optical coating technology and surface micromachining. Subcomponents of the spectrometer are then assembled to create the final device. This method provides optimum performance of the micromachined actuators and semi-transparent mirrors. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.