Advanced Packaging / Hermetic
Hermetic Packaging, Sealed and Qualified.
Hermetic packaging for hardware that has to survive the field – sealed cavities, leak-tested to MIL-STD, and qualified with data you can hand to a program office. One engineering team, on US soil.
/ Fine & gross leak / MIL-STD screening / US-soil
Proof, from real builds
Solder, epoxy, eutectic seam & seam-weld seals
Fine & gross leak test, MIL-STD-883 Method 1014
Hermetic, US-soil sealing
Qualification data, leak-rate detail, and full build records available under NDA.
Hermetic capability
Seal it. Then prove it.
A hermetic claim is only worth the leak rate behind it. We seal the cavity, test it, and document the result so the package is defensible – not assumed.
Sealing is matched to the device: sensors and MEMS that need a stable cavity, optoelectronics that cannot tolerate moisture on the active surface, and RF modules where a wet cavity shifts performance. We build to advanced-packaging tolerances — precise die bonding under the lid — then verify hermeticity before anything ships.
- 01Hermetic seal of cavity packages – solder, epoxy, eutectic seam-seal alloys (Au-Si, Au-In, Sn-Ag), and Kovar lids with glass-to-metal seals and seam welding
- 02Fine leak test by helium tracer to MIL-STD-883 Method 1014
- 03Gross leak test to confirm there is no large breach
- 04Inert-gas cavity backfill – a dry, controlled atmosphere sealed in for sensors, MEMS, and optoelectronics
- 05Hermetic RF and mixed-signal modules on AlN and ceramic carriers
- 06Build records that trace each seal back to its leak result
Measured leak rate · documented method · traceable to the unit · ready for a program review.
How the seal is made
Seal it low. Prove it tight.
A hermetic package is two decisions: how you close the cavity, and how you prove it stayed closed.
We match the seal method to the part. Low-temperature solder and epoxy lid seals close active-die, sensor, and MEMS cavities without spending thermal budget the die attach and a released MEMS structure may not have. Where a build wants a metallurgical seal, we run eutectic seam sealing in Au-Si, Au-In, and Sn-Ag, and seal Kovar lids with glass-to-metal seals and seam welding. Higher-temperature glass-frit sealing suits bare, rugged parts, but it costs that headroom, which is why active-die and sensor cavities favor a cooler seal.
When the cavity environment is part of the spec, we backfill the seal with an inert gas, so the interior closes dry and controlled rather than trapping room air.
- FineHelium-tracer fine leak resolves the slow leaks that dry a cavity out over years, to MIL-STD-883 Method 1014.
- GrossGross leak catches an outright breach, to MIL-STD-883 Method 1014.
- RecordedThe measured leak rate is recorded against the unit, so the seal is proven, not presumed.
MIL-STD-883 Method 1014 – the leak standard your program office already audits to.
Hermetic for sensors
Hermetic packages for sensors.
The hardest hermetic job is a sensor. A MEMS transducer, a photonic die, or a reference cavity has to hold its environment for the life of the part, because that environment is part of the measurement.
Let moisture into a sensor cavity and the zero drifts, the span drifts, and a part that passed calibration at acceptance reads wrong in the field. For a released MEMS structure, a wet or reactive cavity can stick or corrode the moving element outright. Packaging, not the die, sets how long a sensor holds calibration.
So we seal the cavity cool enough to leave the released structure intact, leak-test it to MIL-STD-883 Method 1014, and document the rate. The sensor that ships holds its calibration as long as the seal does.
A hermetic lid closes over a wire-bonded or die-attached assembly, and one team builds the interconnect under the lid, then seals and verifies in one flow: wire bonding and die bonding, then hermetic seal and leak test.
A wet cavity is a failure waiting.
Moisture is the enemy of every device you cannot service in the field.
Trapped water vapor drives corrosion, dendrite growth, and parametric drift. On a satellite payload, an implant, or a missile seeker, that drift is the difference between mission life and an early return. A real hermetic seal keeps the cavity dry across temperature, vibration, and years – so the device that passes at acceptance still passes at end of life.
We treat the seal as a reliability decision, not a closeout step. Test it now, or field it and find out later.
Test & qualification
Screened to a standard.
MIL-STD screening
Visual, electrical, and hermetic screening run against MIL-STD methods, so the package speaks the language your program office already audits to.
Thermal cycling
Cycling stresses the seal across temperature extremes to surface weak joints before the field does. See failure analysis & reliability for the full reliability flow.
Leak verification
Fine and gross leak test before and after stress, with the measured rate recorded against each unit. The seal is proven, not presumed.
Full screening sequence and qualification data under NDA.
Where it fits
Built for the unforgiving.
Aerospace & defense
Payloads, seekers, and avionics that have to qualify once and survive the mission. MIL-STD screening, hermetic, US-soil.
Aerospace & defense →Medical & bio
Implantable and diagnostic devices where a dry cavity protects the patient and the parametrics over years in vivo.
Medical & bio →Sensors & optoelectronics
MEMS, photonic, and RF sensors that need a stable, controlled cavity to hold calibration in the field.
Advanced packaging →How we engage
From seal spec to signed-off data.
FAQ / Hermetic sensors
Hermetic sensor packaging, answered.
What is a hermetic package for sensors?
A hermetic package for sensors is a sealed cavity that holds a dry, stable atmosphere around a MEMS, photonic, or reference die for the life of the part. We close the lid with low-temperature solder, epoxy, or eutectic seam seals, backfill an inert gas when the cavity environment is part of the spec, then fine- and gross-leak test to MIL-STD-883 Method 1014.
When does a sensor need hermetic packaging?
A sensor needs hermetic packaging when its measurement depends on the cavity staying dry and stable. Moisture drifts the zero and the span, and a released MEMS element can stick or corrode, so a part that passed calibration at acceptance reads wrong in the field. When the environment around the die is part of the spec, seal it hermetically and leak-test the result.
Process More.
Bring us the package
that has to stay sealed.
Request a capability brief for sealing approach, hermeticity test methods, and qualification data – full detail under NDA.
/ US-soil / traceable / MIL-STD