Micromachined microsystems: miniaturization beyond microelectronics

The current state of art in the development of micromachined microsystems is reviewed. Micromachining integrated circuit technologies are increasingly used in combination to develop systems that combine both electronic and non-electronic devices for sensing, actuation, and control. Micromachined systems capable of operating on electronic, mechanical, fluidic, optical, and radiative signals have been developed and commercialized. Several examples of emerging systems with application in microinstrumentation, inertial sensing, biomedical devices, wireless communication, and high-density data storage are presented.