JP2003133895A - Vibrating piece, vibrator, oscillator and electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vibrating piece, a vibrator, an oscillator and an electronic equipment that cause no oscillation failure by preventing a grooved electrode from breaking, etc. SOLUTION: The vibrating piece is made of crystalline quartz and comprises a base 140 on which a base electrode 140d is formed, vibrating arms 120 and 130 formed while protruding from the base, and grooves 120a and 130a provided to grooved electrodes 120d and 130d formed on front surface and/or rear surface of the vibrating arms. The vibrating piece 100 is constituted by comprising opening constricted parts 120f and 130f in which the length in widthwise direction that is short in its side direction of a groove opening of the groove becomes narrower as approximating to the base side and/or tip side, and providing a gentle slope in which the angle of inclination of a sidewall of groove, formed in the depth direction of the groove and corresponding to the opening constricted part, is gentler than that of the other part of the sidewall of groove.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vibrating piece made of crystal, a vibrator having the vibrating piece, an oscillator and an electronic device including the vibrator.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece, which is a vibrating piece, is constructed as shown in FIG. That is, the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 10 has a base portion 11 and two arm portions 12 and 13 formed so as to project from the base portion 11. And these two arms 1
A groove 12a and a groove 13a are provided in 2 and 13.

The grooves 12a and 13a are also provided on the back surfaces of the arm portions 12 and 13 which are not shown in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 11 which is a sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 10, the arms 12 and 13 are formed to have a substantially H-shaped cross-section. Such a substantially H-shaped tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 10 has a low vibration loss in the arms 12 and 13 and a CI value (crystal impedance or equivalent series resistance) even if the size of the vibrating piece is remarkably reduced. It has a characteristic that it can be kept low.

Therefore, the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 10 of substantially H shape is used.
Are suitable for, for example, a vibrator that requires high precision performance even if it is particularly small. As such a vibrator, for example, a small vibrator having a resonance frequency of 32.768 kHz or the like is used, and it is considered to use the substantially H-shaped tuning fork crystal vibrating piece 10 as a vibrating piece of such a vibrator. ing. Then, this small vibrator or the like having a resonance frequency of 32.768 kHz is finally used by being incorporated in a precision instrument such as a watch.

By the way, the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 10 of the above-mentioned H type has the arm portion 1 when an electric current is applied from the outside.
2 and 13 vibrate. Specifically, the groove electrode 12 is formed in the grooves 12a and 13a shown in FIGS.
b and 13b are formed, and both side surfaces 12 are side surfaces of the arm portions 12 and 13 in which the grooves 12a and 13a are not provided.
Side electrodes 12d and 13d are formed on c and 13c. When a current is applied, an electric field is generated between the groove electrodes 12b and 13b and the side surface electrodes 12d and 13d, and the arm portions 12 and 13 are formed.
Is designed to vibrate.

By the way, such groove electrodes 12b and 13 are formed.
Specifically, b is arranged as shown in FIG. FIG. 12 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the groove electrode 13b has a groove bottom surface 13 of the groove 13a.
e, the groove side wall 13f and the arm surface 13g of the arm portion 13 are formed. Such a groove electrode 13b has, for example, A
It is made of uCr and arranged in a predetermined shape as shown in FIG. 10. This arrangement is formed by a so-called photolithography process using a resist.

[0007]

FIG. 13 shows C of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a schematic enlarged view showing a state in which a resist is applied to a portion surrounded by a circle shown by. As shown in FIG. 13, the angle θ1 between the groove bottom surface 13e of the groove 13a and the groove side wall 13f is an acute angle. In addition, the groove sidewall 13f and the groove surface 13g
The angle of θ2, which is the angle with, is also an acute angle. Therefore, when the electrodes are arranged along the electrode metal (AuCr) groove 13a in the photolithography process, the same angles θ1 and θ2 are A.
It is made of uCr.

Then, a resist film R is formed on the AuCr thus formed as shown in FIG. 13, and AuCr is formed into a predetermined shape in a photolithography process.
The groove electrode 13b indicated by 0 is formed. This resist film R
13, when a part of the resist film R flows from the upper end of the groove side wall 13f formed at an acute angle to the groove electrode 13b in the direction of the groove bottom surface 13e as shown in FIG. become. As a result, the resist film R in the edge portion E of FIG. 13 formed by the angle θ2 is formed.
Is thinner than other parts. In this state, using the resist film R as a mask and proceeding with the photolithography process,
The resist film R on the edge portion E of FIG. 13 is removed, and the resist film R has a shape like a hole. Then, among the groove electrodes 13b, the groove side wall electrode 13h arranged on the groove side wall 13f and the groove surface electrode 13i arranged on the groove surface 13g shown in FIG.
There was a problem of 0 oscillation failure.

Therefore, in view of the above points, an object of the present invention is to provide a resonator element, a vibrator, an oscillator, and an electronic device which prevent disconnection of the groove electrode portion and the like and which do not cause oscillation failure.

[0010]

According to the invention of claim 1, the above object is to provide a base portion formed of quartz and having a base electrode portion, and a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion. A vibrating reed having a groove portion having a groove electrode portion formed on the front surface and / or the back surface of the vibrating arm portion,
The length in the width direction, which is the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove,
An opening narrowing portion that narrows toward the base portion side and / or the tip end portion side is provided, and the inclination angle of the portion of the groove sidewall formed in the depth direction of the groove portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is another groove. This is achieved by a vibrating piece having a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination angle of the side wall.

According to the first aspect of the invention, the inclination angle of the portion of the side wall portion of the groove formed in the depth direction of the groove portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is gentler than the inclination angle of the other side wall portions. It is a slope. Therefore, even when the electrode metal is placed on this gentle gentle slope in the photolithography process and the resist film or the like is applied on the metal, the resist film flows toward the bottom surface of the groove portion, and at the edge portion or the like which is the upper end portion of the groove portion. It is possible to prevent the resist film from becoming thin. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent a part of the metal for electrodes from being removed and disconnection of a part of the formed groove electrode portion.

Further, according to the structure of claim 1, the length of the groove opening in the width direction, which is the short side direction, of the groove opening becomes narrower as it approaches the base side and / or the tip side. The groove side wall portion formed in the depth direction of the groove portion and corresponding to the opening narrowing portion has a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination angles of the other groove side wall portions. The vibrating piece is made of crystal. By the way, although the groove portion is formed in the vibrating arm portion by anisotropic etching, in the case of anisotropic etching with respect to quartz, if the width direction of the groove portion is narrowed, an etching stop phenomenon occurs in the depth direction of the groove portion. The position where this etching stop occurs tends to occur in a shallow portion as the length in the width direction becomes shorter.

Therefore, when the length of the groove opening in the width direction which is the short side direction of the groove portion becomes narrower as it approaches the base side and / or the tip side, the opening narrowing portion is formed by anisotropic etching. The position where the etching stop occurs gradually becomes shallower as the length in the width direction becomes shorter. Therefore, the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in which the opening narrowing portion is formed in the groove portion is a gentle slope compared to the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in the portion in which the opening narrowing portion is not formed. Become. By anisotropically etching the opening narrowing portion in this manner, the gentle slope can be easily formed on the groove side wall portion.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 2, in the vibrating element according to claim 1, the opening of the opening narrowing portion has a substantially V-shape or a substantially arc shape. is there. According to the configuration of claim 2, the opening shape of the opening narrowing portion is a substantially V shape or a substantially arc shape. Therefore, different etching stops are generated depending on the specific shapes of the substantially V shape and the substantially arc shape, and the gentle sloped surface having a different inclination angle depending on the shape is formed on the side wall portion of the groove corresponding to the opening narrowing portion. Will be formed.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 3, in the vibrating piece according to claim 1 or 2, the vibrating piece is formed of a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 4, in the configuration of claim 3, the resonance frequency of the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece is about 32.768 kHz or about 75 kHz. Is.

According to the third or fourth aspect of the invention, the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece or the resonance frequency is approximately 32.768k.
In the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece having a frequency of about Hz or about 75 kHz, the inclination angle of the portion of the groove side wall formed in the depth direction of the groove corresponding to the opening constriction is different from that of the other groove side wall. The slope is gentler than the angle of inclination. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent disconnection of a part of the groove electrode portion. Further, the gentle slope of the groove side wall is formed by anisotropically etching the opening narrowing portion,
It can be easily formed.

According to the invention of claim 5, the above object is to form a base portion, which is made of quartz and has a base electrode portion, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a surface of the vibrating arm portion. And / or a groove portion having a groove electrode portion formed on the back surface, wherein the resonator element is a vibrator housed in a package, and the groove of the groove portion of the resonator element is provided. A groove side wall portion formed in the depth direction of the groove portion is provided with an opening narrowing portion whose length in the width direction which is the short side direction of the opening portion becomes narrower as it approaches the base portion side and / or the tip end side. The vibrator is characterized in that the inclination angle of the portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is a gentle slope which is gentler than the inclination angles of the other groove side wall portions.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the inclination angle of the portion of the side wall of the vibrating piece formed in the depth direction of the groove corresponding to the opening constriction is the inclination of the other side wall of the groove. It has a gentler slope. Therefore, the metal for electrodes is arranged on this gentle gentle slope by the photolithography process,
Even when a resist film or the like is applied thereon, it is possible to prevent the resist film from flowing in the direction of the bottom surface of the groove and thinning of the resist film at the edge, which is the upper end of the groove. For this reason, a part of the electrode metal is removed, and the part of the formed groove electrode part can be effectively prevented from being broken.

According to the structure of claim 5, as the length in the width direction, which is the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove of the vibrating piece, becomes closer to the base side and / or the tip side. The groove has a narrowed opening constriction, and the inclination angle of the portion of the side wall of the groove formed in the depth direction of the groove corresponding to the opening constriction is a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination of the other side wall of the groove. There is. The vibrating piece is made of crystal. By the way, although the groove portion is formed in the vibrating arm portion by anisotropic etching, in the case of anisotropic etching with respect to quartz, if the width direction of the groove portion is narrowed, an etching stop phenomenon occurs in the depth direction of the groove portion. The position where this etching stop occurs tends to occur in a shallow portion as the length in the width direction becomes shorter.

Therefore, when the length of the groove opening in the width direction, which is the short side direction, of the groove opening becomes narrower as it approaches the base side and / or the tip side, the opening constriction is formed by anisotropic etching. The position where the etching stop occurs gradually becomes shallower as the length in the width direction becomes shorter. Therefore, the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in which the opening narrowing portion is formed in the groove portion is a gentle slope compared to the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in the portion in which the opening narrowing portion is not formed. Become. By anisotropically etching the opening narrowing portion in this manner, the oscillator can be easily formed in the groove side wall portion.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 6, in the structure of claim 5, the vibrator is characterized in that the opening shape of the opening narrowing portion of the vibrating piece is a substantially V shape or a substantially arc shape. Is. According to the structure of claim 6, the opening shape of the opening narrowing portion of the vibrating piece is a substantially V shape or a substantially arc shape. Therefore, different etching stops are generated depending on the specific shapes of the substantially V shape and the substantially arc shape, and the side wall of the groove corresponding to the opening narrowing portion,
The gentle slope having different inclination angles is formed depending on the shape.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 7, the vibrator according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the vibrating piece is formed of a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece.

Preferably, according to the invention of claim 8, in the structure of claim 7, the resonance frequency of the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece is approximately 32.768 kHz or 75 kHz. is there.

According to a ninth aspect of the invention, there is provided the vibrator according to any one of the fifth to eighth aspects, wherein the package is formed in a box shape.

[0026] Preferably, according to the invention of claim 10,
The vibrator according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the package is formed in a so-called cylinder type.

According to the configurations of claims 7 to 10,
The tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece or the resonance frequency is approximately 32.768.
The groove portion of the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece having a frequency of about kHz or about 75 kHz, the vibrator having the box-shaped package or the vibrator of the vibrator having the so-called cylinder type package. The inclination angle of the portion of the side wall portion of the groove formed in the depth direction corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is a gentle slope which is gentler than the inclination angles of the other side wall portions of the groove. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent disconnection of a part of the groove electrode portion. The gentle slope of the groove side wall can be easily formed by anisotropically etching the opening constriction.

According to the invention of claim 11, the object is to:
A base portion made of crystal, in which a base electrode portion is formed, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove portion having a groove electrode portion formed on the front surface and / or the back surface of the vibrating arm portion. The resonator element and the integrated circuit are oscillators housed in a package, and the length of the groove opening of the groove of the resonator element in the width direction which is the short side direction. , An opening narrowing portion that narrows toward the base side and / or the tip end side, and the inclination angle of the portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion of the groove side wall formed in the depth direction of the groove is different. This is achieved by an oscillator characterized in that it has a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination angle of the groove side wall.

According to the invention of claim 12, the above object is
A base portion made of crystal, in which a base electrode portion is formed, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove portion having a groove electrode portion formed on the front surface and / or the back surface of the vibrating arm portion. In the electronic device using the vibrator, the vibrator is housed in a package, and the vibrator is connected to a control unit. A groove side wall portion formed in the depth direction of the groove portion is provided with an opening narrowing portion whose length in the width direction, which is the short side direction, of the groove opening portion is narrowed toward the base portion side and / or the tip end side. The electronic device is characterized in that the inclination angle of the portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is a gentle slope which is gentler than the inclination angles of the other groove side wall portions.

According to the eleventh aspect or the twelfth aspect, the inclination angle of the portion of the side wall portion of the vibrating piece formed in the depth direction of the groove portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion has another inclination side wall. The slope is gentler than the angle of inclination of the part.
Therefore, even when the electrode metal is placed on this gentle gentle slope in the photolithography process and the resist film or the like is applied on the metal, the resist film flows toward the bottom surface of the groove portion, and at the edge portion or the like which is the upper end portion of the groove portion. It is possible to prevent the resist film from becoming thin. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent a part of the metal for electrodes from being removed and disconnection of a part of the formed groove electrode portion.

According to the eleventh or twelfth aspect, the length in the width direction, which is the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove of the vibrating piece, is the base side and / or the tip side. An opening constriction portion that becomes narrower toward the opening side, and the inclination angle of the portion of the groove side wall portion formed in the depth direction of the groove portion that corresponds to the opening constriction portion is gentler than the inclination angle of the other groove side wall portions. It is a slope. The vibrating piece is made of crystal. By the way, although the groove portion is formed in the vibrating arm portion by anisotropic etching, in the case of anisotropic etching with respect to quartz, if the width direction of the groove portion is narrowed, an etching stop phenomenon occurs in the depth direction of the groove portion. The position where this etching stop occurs tends to occur in a shallow portion as the length in the width direction becomes shorter.

Therefore, when the length of the groove opening in the width direction, which is the short side direction, of the groove opening becomes narrower as it gets closer to the base side and / or the tip side, the opening constriction is formed by anisotropic etching. The position where the etching stop occurs gradually becomes shallower as the length in the width direction becomes shorter. Therefore, the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in which the opening narrowing portion is formed in the groove portion is a gentle slope compared to the inclination angle of the groove side wall portion in the portion in which the opening narrowing portion is not formed. Become. By anisotropically etching the opening narrowing portion in this manner, the gentle slope can be easily formed on the groove side wall portion.

[0033]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiment described below is a preferred specific example of the present invention,
Although various technically preferable limitations are given, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these forms unless otherwise specified in the description below.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece 1 which is a vibrating piece according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
It is a schematic diagram showing 00. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line GG ′ of FIG. The tuning fork type crystal unit 100 is formed by cutting a single crystal of quartz and processing it into a tuning fork type. At this time, the quartz crystal is cut out so that the X axis shown in FIG. 1 is the electric axis, the Y axis is the mechanical axis, and the Z axis is the optical axis. Thus, the electric axis is X in FIG.
By being arranged in the axial direction, the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 is suitable for general electronic devices such as mobile phone devices requiring high accuracy.

More precisely, the tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece 1
00 is the above-mentioned X axis, Y when cut out from a single crystal of quartz.
In a Cartesian coordinate system consisting of axes and Z axes, around the X axis,
A tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 1 as a so-called crystal Z plate in which an XY plane composed of an X axis and a Y axis is tilted counterclockwise by about 1 to 5 degrees.
00 will be formed.

Such a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece 100 includes a base portion 140 and tuning fork arms 120 and 130 which are, for example, two vibrating arm portions formed so as to project from the base portion 140 in the Y-axis direction in the figure. have. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, groove portions 120a and 130a are formed in the two tuning fork arms 120 and 130, respectively. These groove portions 120a and 130a are similarly formed on the back surfaces of the two tuning fork arms 120 and 130 as shown in FIG.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the arm portions 120 and 130 are provided with the groove portions 120a and the like in the vertical direction in the figure, so that the cross-sectional shape thereof is formed into a substantially H shape.

The tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 as described above has the tuning-fork arm 1 even if the size of the vibrating piece is remarkably reduced as compared with the conventional one.
The vibration loss of 20 and 130 is low, and the CI value (crystal impedance or equivalent series resistance) can be suppressed low. Therefore, the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 1
00 is suitable for, for example, a vibrator that is required to have highly accurate performance even if it is particularly small. An example of such a vibrator is a small vibrator having a resonance frequency of 32.768 kHz or 75 kHz.

The tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 as described above includes
As shown in FIG. 1, an electrode made of AuCr or the like (hatched portion in the drawing) is formed. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, a base electrode 140d is formed on the base 140, and groove electrodes 120d and 130d are formed on the groove portions 120a and 130a of the tuning fork arms 120 and 130, respectively.
In addition, the side surface electrodes 12 are provided on the arm side surfaces 120b and 130b on both side surfaces of the tuning fork arms 120 and 130 shown in FIG.
0e and 130e are formed.

The side surface electrodes 120e and 130e and the groove electrodes 120d and 130d are connected to the base electrode 140. Therefore, electric power supplied from a package or the like on which the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 is placed is transmitted through the base electrode 140d to the side surface electrodes 120e and 130e and the groove electrode 120d,
It is supplied to 130d. Then, these side surface electrodes 120
e, 130e and the groove electrodes 120b, 130b, an electric field is efficiently generated in the tuning fork arms 120, 130.
It is configured to vibrate 20 and 130.

By the way, the groove electrode 1 arranged in this way
Specifically, the electrodes such as 20d and the side surface electrode 120e are composed of a plurality of layers, for example, two layers, with Cr as the base and A as the upper layer.
It is formed from u. In this case, Ni instead of Cr
Alternatively, Ti or the like may be used. It may also consist of one layer, in which case, for example, an Al layer is used. In addition to this, an electrode whose surface is anodized with an Al electrode and a Cr electrode 1
It is also possible to use an electrode in which SiO2 or the like is formed as a protective film on the Cr layer. Further, the thickness of the electrode is, for example, 100 Å for the lower layer Cr and 1000 Å for the upper layer Au.
Is made.

Tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece 1 formed in this way
00, the length W in the width direction, which is the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove 120a, 130a, becomes narrower as it approaches the base 140 side, and this narrowed portion becomes the opening narrowing 120f, 130f. Made of This opening constriction 1
The shape of the groove openings of 20f and 130f is formed in a substantially V shape as shown in FIG. 1, and in the figure, the length in the vertical direction is L and the length in the width direction is gradually narrowed. Has been formed.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view taken along the line FF ′ of FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the tuning fork arm 130.
Since the 20 has the same configuration, the tuning fork arm 130 will be described below, and the description of the tuning fork arm 120 will be omitted. As shown in FIG. 3, the groove portion 130a includes a groove bottom surface 131 that is the deepest portion,
The groove side wall 132 connects the groove bottom surface 131 and the arm surface 133 of the tuning fork arm 130. And this groove bottom surface 1
31, the groove electrode 1 along the groove side wall 132 and the arm surface 133.
30d is formed.

Here, the opening narrowing portion 130 of the groove portion 130a.
f is formed in a portion indicated by the length L of the opening constriction portion in FIG. Then, the groove side wall 13 of the opening narrowing portion 130f.
The inclination angle of 2 is gentler than the inclination angle of the groove side wall 132 of the other portion. Specifically, the groove side wall 132 on the upper end side of the groove 130 of FIG. 1 is shown on the left side of FIG. The angle θ5 of the groove side wall 132 with respect to the groove bottom surface 131 and the angle θ6 with respect to the arm surface 133 are shown in FIG.
It has an acute angle as shown in. For example, the angle θ5 is 3
The angle θ6 is about 6 °, and the angle θ6 is about 144 °.

On the other hand, the opening constriction 1 on the right side of FIG.
At the portion 30f, the angle θ3 of the groove side wall 132 with respect to the groove bottom surface 131 and the angle θ4 with respect to the arm surface 133 are gentle slopes as compared with the angles θ5 and θ6. For example, the angle θ3 is about 20 °, and the angle θ4
Is about 160 °.

By the way, when the groove portion 130a is formed in the tuning fork arm 130 of the tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece 100 of the present embodiment, anisotropic etching is performed. In this anisotropic etching, an etching stop phenomenon occurs in which the depth direction becomes shallower as the width direction W of the groove portion 130a shown in FIG. 1 becomes narrower. Therefore, in the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the present embodiment, the depth of the groove 130 can be easily adjusted by changing the shape of the groove opening of the groove 130a formed on the arm surface 133 of the tuning fork arm 130. You will be able to

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, since the groove opening of the opening narrowing portion 130f is formed in a substantially V shape, anisotropic etching is performed along the substantially V shape. Then, as the width direction becomes narrower, that is, the groove portion 130a becomes shallower as it approaches the base portion 140. And
As shown in FIG. 3, the inclination angle of the groove side wall 132 becomes gentle over the length L to form a gentle slope.
Since the groove opening is formed in the other part of the groove 130a with the same width W, a gentle slope is not particularly formed, and the groove side wall 132 is formed at the same angle as the groove side wall 132 on the left side of FIG. Will be.

A groove electrode 130d having a shape as shown in FIG. 1 is arranged on the groove portion 130a thus formed.
Specifically, the groove electrode 13 is formed by a so-called photolithography process.
0a is formed. That is, AuCr or the like which is a metal for electrodes is arranged on the groove portion 130a formed by anisotropic etching on the tuning fork arm 130, and the groove electrode 13 of FIG.
The resist film R is applied to the shape of 0d. Then, a photolithography process is performed to remove the AuCr in a portion where the resist film R is not applied, and then the groove electrode 130d is arranged as shown in FIG. 1 through a predetermined process.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state in which AuCr is placed in the groove 130a of the tuning fork arm 130 and the resist film R is applied thereon in the photolithography process. As shown in the figure, in the opening narrowing portion 130f of the groove portion 130a, since a gentle gentle slope having a width of the length L is formed, the applied resist film R flows toward the groove bottom surface 131 side of the groove portion 130a, The thickness of the edge portion E, which is a boundary portion between the groove side wall 132 and the arm surface 133 shown in FIG. 4, does not become remarkably thinner than other portions. Therefore, unlike the conventional case shown in FIG. 13, the thickness of the resist film R at the edge portion E is not insufficient. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent AuCr from being partially removed and disconnection of the completed groove electrode 130d.

Although the groove electrode 130d is arranged in this way, the other base electrode 140d, the side surface electrode 130e, etc. are also formed by the photolithography process. In addition, in the present embodiment, the groove portion 130, which is a portion where disconnection or the like is particularly likely to occur, is performed.
The opening constriction 130f was formed on the base 140 side of a.
The present invention is not limited to this, and the opening narrowing portion 130f may be formed in another portion of the groove portion 130a.

Further, the shape of the groove opening of the opening narrowing portion 130f is not limited to the substantially V shape, but may be any shape for causing the etching stop phenomenon at a desired depth. FIG. 5 shows an example in which the tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece 200 is formed with substantially arc-shaped opening constrictions 220f and 230f.
As described above, the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the present embodiment,
According to No. 200, it is possible to easily and surely prevent disconnection or the like of a part of the groove electrode 130d, and a vibrating piece that is less likely to cause oscillation failure.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a ceramic package tuning-fork vibrator 200 which is a vibrator according to a second embodiment of the present invention. This ceramic package tuning fork type resonator 200 uses the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the first embodiment described above. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the configuration, operation and the like of the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100, and the description thereof will be omitted.

The figure shows a ceramic package tuning fork type vibrator 2.
It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structure of 00. As shown in FIG. 5, the ceramic package tuning-fork vibrator 200 has a box-shaped package 210 having a space inside. This package 210 has a base 2 at the bottom thereof.
11 is provided. The base portion 211 is made of, for example, ceramics such as alumina.

A sealing portion 212 is provided on the base portion 211, and the sealing portion 212 is made of the same material as the lid 213. In addition, the sealing portion 212
A lid 213 is placed on the base of the base portion 21.
1, the sealing part 212 and the lid body 213 form a hollow box body. The package side electrode 214 is formed on the base portion 211 of the package 210 formed as described above.
Is provided. The base electrode 140d of the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 is fixed on the package side electrode 214 via a conductive adhesive or the like.

The tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 vibrates when a constant current is applied from the package side electrode 214. At this time, the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100
The groove electrodes 120d and 130d are not easily broken. Therefore, the ceramic package tuning fork type resonator 200 including the tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece 100 that is less likely to cause oscillation failure.
Becomes

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 7 shows a digital mobile phone 300 which is an electronic device according to the third embodiment.
FIG. This digital mobile phone 300 uses the ceramic package tuning fork type resonator 200 and the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the second embodiment described above. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the configurations and operations of the ceramic package tuning fork type resonator 200 and the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100, and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a circuit block of the digital mobile phone 300. As shown in FIG. 7, when transmitting with the digital mobile phone 300, when the user inputs his / her voice into the microphone, the signal passes through the pulse width modulation / encoding block and the modulator / demodulator block. It will be transmitted from the antenna via the transmitter and antenna switch. On the other hand, the signal transmitted from the telephone of another person is received by the antenna, and the antenna switch,
The signal is input from the receiver to the modulator / demodulator block through the reception filter and the like. Then, the modulated or demodulated signal is output as a voice to the speaker through the pulse width modulation / encoding block. Among these, a controller is provided to control the antenna switch, the modulator / demodulator block, and the like.

In addition to the above, this controller includes an LCD which is a display unit, a key which is an input unit for numbers, and an RA.
Since the M and ROM are also controlled, high precision is required, and the high precision ceramic package tuning fork vibrator 2 described above is required to meet the demand of this high precision controller.
00 will be used. That is, the groove electrodes 120d and 130d of the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 housed in the ceramic package tuning fork vibrator 200 are configured to be hard to break. Therefore, the digital mobile phone 30 including the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 in which oscillation failure is unlikely to occur
It becomes 0.

(Fourth Embodiment) FIG. 8 shows a tuning fork crystal oscillator 40 which is an oscillator according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
It is a figure which shows 0. This digital tuning fork crystal oscillator 400
Has a common configuration in many parts with the ceramic package tuning-fork vibrator 200 of the second embodiment described above. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the configurations and operations of the ceramic package tuning fork type resonator 200 and the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100, and the description thereof will be omitted.

A tuning fork type crystal oscillator 400 shown in FIG. 8 is provided below the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the ceramic package tuning fork vibrator 200 shown in FIG.
The integrated circuit 410 is arranged as shown in FIG. That is, in the tuning fork crystal oscillator 400, when the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 arranged therein vibrates, the vibration is input to the integrated circuit 410, and then a predetermined frequency signal is taken out to function as an oscillator. Will be done.

That is, the groove electrodes 120d, 1 of the tuning fork crystal vibrating piece 100 housed in the tuning fork crystal oscillator 400.
30d has a configuration in which disconnection or the like is difficult. Therefore,
The tuning fork crystal oscillator 400 includes the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 in which oscillation failure is unlikely to occur.

(Fifth Embodiment) FIG. 9 is a view showing a cylinder type tuning fork vibrator 500 which is a vibrator according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. This cylinder type tuning fork vibrator 500 uses the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 of the above-described first embodiment. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the configuration, operation and the like of the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100, and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 9 shows a cylinder type tuning fork vibrator 50.
It is a schematic diagram showing the composition of 0. As shown in FIG. 9, the cylinder type tuning fork resonator 500 includes a metal cap 530 for accommodating the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 therein.
have. The cap 530 is press-fitted into the stem 520, and the inside thereof is kept in a vacuum state.

Further, two leads 510 for holding the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 housed in the cap 530 are arranged. When an electric current is externally applied to such a cylinder type tuning fork vibrator 500, the arm portion 120 of the tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 vibrates and functions as a vibrator. At this time, the groove electrodes 120d and 130d of the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100 are configured so as not to be easily broken.
Therefore, the tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 10 in which oscillation failure hardly occurs
A cylinder type tuning fork vibrator 500 having 0 is obtained.

In each of the above-mentioned embodiments, 32.7.
The description has been given by taking a 68 kHz tuning fork crystal unit as an example.
It is obvious that the present invention can be applied to a tuning fork type crystal unit of kHz to 155 kHz. The tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece 100, 200 according to the above-described embodiment is not limited to the above-described example, but may be another electronic device, a portable information terminal, a television, a video device, a so-called radio cassette player, a personal computer, or the like. Obviously, it can be used for a device with a built-in watch and a watch.

Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims. The configuration of the above embodiment can be partially omitted or changed to any other combination not described above.

[0066]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a resonator element, a vibrator, an oscillator, and an electronic device that prevent disconnection of the groove electrode portion or the like and prevent oscillation failure.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece which is a vibrating piece according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line G-G ′ of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line F-F ′ of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which AuCr is arranged in a groove portion of a tuning fork arm and a resist film is applied thereon in a photolithography process.

FIG. 5 is a partial schematic cross-sectional view showing an example in which a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece is provided with a substantially arc-shaped opening narrowing portion.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a ceramic package tuning fork type vibrator according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a circuit block of a digital mobile phone according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view showing a configuration of a tuning fork crystal oscillator according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a cylinder type tuning fork vibrator according to a fifth embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing a configuration of a conventional tuning-fork type crystal vibrating piece.

FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ′ of FIG.

12 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line B-B ′ of FIG.

13 is a schematic enlarged view of a portion indicated by an arrow C in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

100, 200 ... Tuning fork type crystal vibrating piece, 120, 13
0 ... Arm, 120a, 130a ... Groove, 120
b, 130b ... Arm side, 120d, 130d ...
Groove electrode, 120e, 130e ... Side electrode, 120
f, 130f, 220f, 230f ... aperture constricted portion,
140 ... Base, 140d ... Base electrode, 131.
.... Groove bottom surface, 132 ... groove side wall, 133 ... arm surface, R ... resist film, E ... edge portion, 200
... Ceramic package tuning fork vibrator, 210 ...
Package, 211 ... Base part, 212 ... Sealing part, 213 ... Lid, 214 ... Package side electrode, 300 ... Digital mobile phone, 400 ... Tuning fork crystal oscillator, 410. ..Integrated circuits, 500 ... Cylinder type tuning fork vibrators, 510 ... Leads, 520
... Stem, 530 ... Cap

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Fumitaka Kitamura             Seiko, 3-3-3 Yamato, Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture             -In Epson Corporation F-term (reference) 5J079 AA04 BA43 HA03 HA07 HA09                       HA16 HA29                 5J108 BB02 CC06 CC09 CC11 EE03                       EE07 EE18 FF01 GG03 GG04                       GG06 GG15 GG16 JJ04 KK01

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A base portion made of quartz, having a base electrode portion formed thereon, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove electrode formed on a front surface and / or a rear surface of the vibrating arm portion. A groove having a portion, and a vibrating piece having a width direction length that is a short side direction of the groove opening of the groove,
An opening narrowing portion that narrows toward the base portion side and / or the tip end portion side is provided, and the inclination angle of the portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion of the groove sidewall formed in the depth direction of the groove portion is another groove. A resonator element having a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination angle of the side wall. 2. The opening shape of the opening narrowing portion is a substantially V shape or a substantially arc shape.
The vibrating piece described in. 3. The vibrating piece according to claim 1, wherein the vibrating piece is formed of a tuning fork type quartz vibrating piece. 4. The resonator element according to claim 3, wherein the resonance frequency of the tuning fork type quartz resonator element is about 32.768 kHz or about 75 kHz. 5. A base portion formed of quartz and having a base electrode portion formed thereon, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove electrode formed on a front surface and / or a rear surface of the vibrating arm portion. A vibrating piece having a groove portion having a portion, wherein the vibrating piece is a vibrator housed in a package, and the vibrating piece has a width direction that is a short side direction of a groove opening portion of the groove portion An opening narrowing portion whose length becomes narrower as it approaches the base portion side and / or the tip end portion side, and an inclination angle of a portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion of a groove side wall formed in the depth direction of the groove portion. Is a gentle slope that is gentler than the inclination angle of the other side wall of the groove. 6. The vibrator according to claim 5, wherein an opening shape of the opening narrowing portion of the vibrating piece is a substantially V shape or a substantially arc shape. 7. The vibrator according to claim 5, wherein the vibrating piece is formed of a tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece. 8. The vibrator according to claim 7, wherein the resonance frequency of the tuning-fork type quartz vibrating piece is about 32.768 kHz and about 75 kHz. 9. The vibrator according to claim 5, wherein the package is formed in a box shape. 10. The vibrator according to claim 5, wherein the package is formed in a so-called cylinder type. 11. A base portion formed of quartz, having a base electrode portion formed thereon, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove electrode formed on a front surface and / or a rear surface of the vibrating arm portion. A resonator having a groove portion having a portion, the resonator element and an integrated circuit being an oscillator housed in a package, wherein the width of the resonator element in the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove portion. A lengthwise direction is provided with an opening narrowing portion that becomes narrower as it approaches the base portion side and / or the tip end portion side, and a portion of a groove side wall portion formed in the depth direction of the groove portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion. An oscillator characterized in that the inclination angle is a gentle slope which is gentler than the inclination angles of the other groove side walls. 12. A base portion made of quartz, having a base electrode portion formed thereon, a vibrating arm portion protruding from the base portion, and a groove electrode formed on a front surface and / or a rear surface of the vibrating arm portion. A vibrating reed having a groove portion having a portion, the vibrating reed being a vibrator housed in a package, and an electronic device using the vibrator connected to a control unit, wherein the vibration The groove has an opening narrowing portion whose length in the width direction, which is the short side direction of the groove opening of the groove, becomes narrower as it approaches the base side and / or the tip side, and is formed in the depth direction of the groove. An electronic device in which the inclination angle of a portion of the groove side wall portion corresponding to the opening narrowing portion is a gentle slope which is gentler than the inclination angles of the other groove side wall portions.