In this study, we investigated the effect of electrode pattern design on the thermal shock resistance and temperature uniformity of a ceramic heater. A cordierite substrate with a low thermal expansion coefficient was fabricated by tape casting, and a tungsten electrode was printed and used as a heating element. The temperature distribution of the ceramic heater was calculated by a finite-element method (FEM) by considering various electrode patterns, and the tensile stress distribution due to the thermal stress was calculated. In the electrode pattern with a single-line width, the central part of the ceramic heater was heated to the maximum temperature, and the position of the ceramic heater having a double-line width was changed to the maximum temperature, depending on the position of the minimum line width pattern. The highest tensile stress was found along the edges of the ceramic heater. The temperature gradient at the edge determined the tensile stress intensity. The smallest tensile stress was observed for electrode pattern D, which was expected to be advantageous in resisting thermal shock failures in ceramic heaters.

Electrode pattern effects on the capacitive humidity sensor were investigated. The fabrication of the capacitive humidity sensor was formed with three steps. The bottom electrode was formed on the silicon substrate with Pt/Ti thin layer by using shadow mask and e-beam evaporator. The photosensitive polyimide was formed on the bottom electrode by using photolithography process as a humidity sensitive thin film. The upper electrode was formed on the polyimide thin film with Pt/Ti thin layer by using e-beam evaporator and lift-off method. Three electrode patterns, such as circle, square, and triangle pattern, were used and changed the sizes to investigate the effects. The capacitances of the sensors were decreased 622 to 584 pF with the area decreament of patterns 250,000 to 196,250 μm2. From these results, a capacitive humidity sensor with photo sensitive polyimide is expected to be applied to a high sensitive humidity sensor.