What is claimed is:
1. A method for manufacturing at least one micromechanical element, comprising:
providing a substrate layer, a sacrificial layer, and a function layer, the sacrificial layer overlaying at least a first portion of the substrate layer, the function layer overlaying at least a second portion of the sacrificial layer;
etching the function layer to expose at least a portion of the sacrificial layer, the etching forming an outline of the at least one micromechanical element; and
removing at least a third portion of the sacrificial layer between the at least one micromechanical element and the substrate layer by exposing the third portion of the sacrificial layer to heated gaseous hydrogen.
2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least the removing operation is performed in an epitaxy reactor environment.
3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising, before the removing operation, cleaning at least one surface of at least one of the substrate layer, the sacrificial layer, and the function layer.
4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of the substrate layer and the function layer include a silicon bearing compound.
5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the sacrificial layer includes an oxide bearing compound.
6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the removing operation further includes reacting between the gaseous hydrogen and the oxide bearing compound to form at least one of water, silicon monoxide, and silane.
7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the function layer includes a material including at least one of silicon, silicongermanium, and silicon carbide.
8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the function layer is chemically resistant to heated gaseous hydrogen.
9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the gaseous hydrogen is heated to a temperature of between about 600 C. and about 1,400 C.
10. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the gaseous hydrogen is heated to a temperature of between about 800 C. and about 1,200 C.
11. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the removing operation is performed at a pressure below about 10 torr.
12. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein a germanium bearing compound is added to the gaseous hydrogen.
13. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein a silicon bearing compound is added to the gaseous hydrogen.
14. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the providing operation further includes providing an SOI wafer, a top silicon layer of the SOI wafer being the function layer, an insulator layer of the SOI wafer being the sacrificial layer.
15. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the providing operation further includes:
providing a bottom silicon layer, the bottom silicon layer being the substrate layer;
depositing an oxide layer including an oxide bearing compound on the bottom silicon layer, the oxide layer being the sacrificial layer; and
depositing a top silicon layer on the oxide layer, the top silicon layer being the function layer.
16. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the top silicon layer is deposited in at least one of an epitiaxial reactor, a low pressure chemical vapor deposition process, and a sputtering process.
17. The method as recited in claim 15, further comprising, before depositing the top silicon layer, patterning the oxide layer to form at least one hole, the at least one hole exposing a fourth portion of the bottom silicon layer.
18. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the function layer overlays a fourth portion of the substrate layer.
19. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising at least one of:
depositing a further sacrificial layer; and
depositing a further function layer.
20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the at least one of the depositing of the further sacrificial layer and the depositing of the further function layer is performed before the removing operation.
21. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the at least one of the depositing of the further sacrificial layer and the depositing of the further function layer is performed in an epitaxy reactor environment.
22. A device including micromechanical elements, comprising:
a substrate layer;
a sacrificial layer on at least a first portion of the substrate layer; and
a function layer on at least a second portion of the sacrificial layer;
wherein the function layer is released from the substrate layer by exposing the device to gaseous hydrogen.
23. The device as recited in claim 22, wherein the device is produced in an epitaxy reactor environment.
24. The device as recited in claim 22, wherein the function layer is released from the substrate layer by removing a third portion of the sacrificial layer, the third portion arranged between the function layer and the substrate layer.
25. The device of claim 22, wherein:
at least one of the substrate layer and the function layer include silicon; and
the sacrificial layer includes an oxide bearing material.
26. The device as recited in claim 25, wherein the substrate layer, the sacrificial layer, and the function layer collectively form an SOI wafer.
27. The device as recited in claim 25, wherein:
the sacrificial layer is deposited on the substrate layer; and
the function layer is deposited epitaxially on the sacrificial layer.
28. The device as recited in claim 22, further comprising:
a further sacrificial layer on at least a third portion of the function layer; and
a further encapsulation layer on at least a fourth portion of the further sacrificial layer;
wherein the further sacrificial layer is released from the function layer by exposing the device to gaseous hydrogen.
29. A method, comprising:
patterning a function layer, the function layer overlaying at least a first portion of a sacrificial layer, the patterning exposing at least a second portion of the sacrificial layer, the sacrificial layer including an oxide; and
etching selectively the oxide of the sacrificial layer by exposing a third portion of the sacrificial layer to heated gaseous hydrogen.
30. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein at least the etching operation is performed in an epitaxy reactor environment.
31. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the etching operation further includes reacting between the gaseous hydrogen and the oxide to form at least one of water, silicon monoxide, and silane.
32. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the function layer includes a material including at least one of silicon, silicongermanium, and silicon carbide.
33. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the function layer is chemically resistant to heated gaseous hydrogen.
34. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the gaseous hydrogen is heated to a temperature of between about 600 C. and about 1,400 C.
35. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein at least one of a germanium bearing compound and a silicon bearing compound is added to the gaseous hydrogen.
36. The method as recited in claim 29, further comprising at least one of:
depositing a further sacrificial layer; and
depositing a further function layer.
37. The method as recited in claim 36, wherein the at least one of the depositing of the further sacrificial layer and the depositing of the further function layer is performed before the etching operation.
38. The method as recited in claim 36, wherein the at least one of the depositing of the further sacrificial layer and the depositing of the further function layer is performed in an epitaxy reactor environment.
39. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the etching operation is performed at a pressure between about 1 millitorr and 100 torr.
40. The method as recited in claim 39, wherein the etching operation is performed at a pressure below about 10 torr.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A media content player comprising:
a disc drive operable to read media content, an auto-run playback program and copy protection data from an optical disc;
a memory having data structure including a virtual machine for hosting the auto-run playback program; and
a processor operable to (i) execute the auto-run playback program read from the optical disc on the virtual machine, (ii) cause the executed auto-run playback program to interpret the media content by using copy protection data read from the optical disc, and (iii) output the interpreted media content to a playback system for playing back the interpreted media content.
2. The media content player of claim 1, wherein
said processor installs the auto-run playback program into the media content player, and executes the installed auto-run playback program on the virtual machine.
3. The media content player of claim 1, wherein,
the optical disc further records an active agent program; and
said processor executes the auto-run playback program so that the auto-run playback program interacts with the active agent program in order to control playback routine of the media content.
4. The media content player of claim 1, wherein,
said memory further includes a legacy media program for interpreting the media content; and
said processor uses the legacy media program to interpret the media content, when the auto-run program has not been found from the optical disc.
5. A method for a media content player, wherein, the media content player comprises:
a disc drive operable to read media content, an auto-run playback program and copy protection data from an optical disc and
a memory having data structure including a virtual machine for hosting the auto-run playback program, and
the method comprises:
executing the auto-run playback program read from the optical disc on the virtual machine;
causing the executed auto-run playback program to interpret the media content by using copy protection data read from the optical disc; and
outputting the interpreted media content to a playback system for playing back the interpreted media content.
6. A program embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium for use in a media content player, wherein,
the media content player comprises:
a disc drive operable to read media content, an auto-run playback program and copy protection data from an optical disc; and
a memory having data structure including a virtual machine for hosting the auto-run playback program, and
said program comprises computer-executable code operable to cause the media content player to:
execute the auto-run playback program read from the optical disc on the virtual machine;
cause the executed auto-run playback program to interpret the media content by using copy protection data read from the optical disc; and
output the interpreted media content to a playback system for playing back the interpreted media content.
7. A device for use in a media content player, wherein, the media content player comprises:
a disc drive operable to read media content, an auto-run playback program and copy protection data from an optical disc; and
a memory having data structure including a virtual machine for hosting the auto-run playback program, and
said device comprises a processor operable to cause the media content player to:
execute the auto-run playback program read from the optical disc on the virtual machine;
cause the executed auto-run playback program to interpret the media content by using copy protection data read from the optical disc; and
output the interpreted media content to a playback system for playing back the interpreted media content.
8. The media content player of claim 1, wherein the virtual machine implements a program interpreter that interprets and executes the auto-run playback program supplied as data to said interpreter.
9. The method of claim 5, wherein said virtual machine implements a program interpreter and wherein the method further comprises supplying the auto-run playback program as data to said interpreter and using said interpreter to interpret and execute the auto-run playback program.
10. The program embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 6, wherein said virtual machine implements a program interpreter that interprets and executes the auto-run playback program supplied as data to said interpreter.
11. The device of claim 7, wherein the virtual machine implements a program interpreter that interprets and executes the auto-run playback program supplied as data to said interpreter.
12. The media content player of claim 1, wherein the virtual machine provides a controlled environment within which to execute the auto-run playback program.
13. The method of claim 5, wherein the virtual machine provides a controlled environment within which to execute the auto-run playback program.
14. The program embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 6, wherein the virtual machine provides a controlled environment within which to execute the auto-run playback program.
15. The device of claim 7, wherein the virtual machine provides a controlled environment within which to execute the auto-run playback program.