Summary Report for:
17-2199.06 - Microsystems Engineers
Research, design, develop, or test microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices.
This title represents an occupation for which data collection is currently underway.
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Education | Interests | Work Values | Wages & Employment | Job Openings
Tasks
- Conduct harsh environmental testing, accelerated aging, device characterization, or field trials to validate devices, using inspection tools, testing protocols, peripheral instrumentation, or modeling and simulation software.
- Validate fabrication processes for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), using statistical process control implementation, virtual process simulations, data mining, or life testing.
- Conduct analyses addressing issues such as failure, reliability, or yield improvement.
- Conduct experimental or virtual studies to investigate characteristics and processing principles of potential microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology.
- Conduct or oversee the conduct of prototype development or microfabrication activities to ensure compliance to specifications and promote effective production processes.
- Create schematics and physical layouts of integrated microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) components or packaged assemblies consistent with process, functional, or package constraints.
- Develop formal documentation for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices, including quality assurance guidance, quality control protocols, process control checklists, data collection, or reporting.
- Develop or validate product-specific test protocols, acceptance thresholds, or inspection tools for quality control testing or performance measurement.
- Develop or validate specialized materials characterization procedures, such as thermal withstand, fatigue, notch sensitivity, abrasion, or hardness tests.
- Devise microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) production methods, such as integrated circuit fabrication, lithographic electroform modeling, or micromachining.
Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
| Impedance meters — Four point probes |
| Laboratory evaporators — Electron beam evaporators; Metal evaporators |
| Semiconductor process systems — Inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etchers ICP-RIE; Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition PECVD systems; Thin film deposition systems; Wet chemical etching systems |
| Semiconductor testers — Curve tracers; Parametric testers; Semiconductor parameter analyzers; Thin film measurement systems |
| Spectrometers — Raman scattering spectroscopes |
Technology used in this occupation:
| Analytical or scientific software — Simulation software; The MathWorks MATLAB; Very high speed integrated circuit VHSIC hardware description language VHDL simulation software; WinSpice |
| Computer aided design CAD software — Autodesk AutoCAD software; MEMSCAP MEMS Pro; PTC Pro/ENGINEER software; Xcircuit * |
| Development environment software — C; Microsoft Visual Basic; National Instruments LabVIEW |
| Operating system software — Apple Macintosh OS; Microsoft Windows; UNIX |
| Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
* Software developed by a government agency and/or distributed as freeware or shareware.
Education
This occupation may require a background in the following science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational disciplines:
Engineering — Manufacturing Engineering
Interests
Interest code: IRC
| Investigative — Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally. |
| Realistic — Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others. |
| Conventional — Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow. |
Work Values
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. |
| Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
Wages & Employment Trends
National
Median wages data collected from Engineers, All Other.
Employment data collected from Engineers, All Other.
Industry data collected from Engineers, All Other.
| Median wages (2012) | $44.24 hourly, $92,030 annual |
| Employment (2010) | 157,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2010-2020) | 
Slower than average (3% to 9%)
|
| Projected job openings (2010-2020) | 44,800 |
| Top industries (2010) |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2012 wage data
and 2010-2020 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2010-2020). "Projected job openings" represent openings due to growth and replacement.
