An electroless plating process for the fabrication of nickel micromechanical structures on a silicon substrate has been investigated.
Appropriate chemical roughening of the silicon surface is found to be critical for good adhesion of the nickel to the silicon substrate. The
optimum temperature and pH of the elecmless plating solution for smooth nickel films (e.g., R, of 23 A) with practical plating rates (e.g.,
15/zm h- ~) are determined. Electroless plating is shown to be a suitable process for the fabrication of micromechanical structures