US Patent 7404332 - Porous silicon gettering for micromechanical sensor

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7404332.html

Getter materials are often used to absorb contaminates and trace gases. This patent from Robert Bosch GmbH teaches a porous silicon gettering material more convenient for semiconductor based micromechanical structures. Claim 1 reads:

1. A micromechanical component for a sensor, comprising:

a body having a first substrate and a second substrate that form a hollow space; and

a region of porous silicon located contiguously thereto, wherein the region of porous silicon is provided for lowering a pressure prevailing in the hollow space, in that a gas is bound to the porous silicon.