Integrated heater and method of manufacture

1. A method of constructing a heater comprising the steps of:

hot pressing a ceramic powder and a plurality of first slugs and forming a sintered assembly including a ceramic substrate and the plurality of first slugs embedded therein;

forming a functional element on one of opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly such that the functional element is connected to the plurality of first slugs; and

forming a monolithic substrate in which the functional element and the plurality of first slugs are embedded.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising forming a material layer on the other one of the opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly such that the functional element is connected to the material layer by the plurality of first slugs.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the material layer is a metal foil.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of forming a functional element comprises:

forming at least one trench into the one of the opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly and into a part of the plurality of first slugs; and

depositing a functional material into the at least one trench to form the functional element such that the functional element is connected to the plurality of first slugs.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the step of depositing a functional material into the at least one trench comprises:

depositing the functional material on the one of the opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly and into the at least one trench; and

removing excess functional material such that the functional material is present only within the at least one trench.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein the step of removing excess functional material comprises a process selected from a group consisting of a chemical mechanical planarization/polishing (CMP), etching, and polishing.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of forming the sintered assembly comprises:

placing the plurality of first slugs in an isostatic press chamber;

filling the isostatic press chamber with the ceramic powder; and

hot pressing the ceramic powder and the plurality of first slugs to form the sintered assembly.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the step of forming the monolithic substrate comprises:

placing the sintered assembly in an isostatic hot press chamber;

placing at least one of additional ceramic powder and a sintered substrate part onto the sintered assembly; and

hot pressing the sintered assembly, the functional element, and the at least one of the additional ceramic powder and the sintered substrate part to form the monolithic substrate.

9. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising forming a material layer on the other one of opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly such that the material layer is connected to the plurality of first slugs.

10. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the sintered assembly further includes a plurality of second slugs having a smaller length than the plurality of first slugs, the material layer being connected to the plurality of second slugs.

11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the step of forming the monolithic substrate comprises:

placing a sintered substrate part in an isostatic hot press chamber;

placing the sintered assembly on the sintered substrate part;

filling the isostatic hot press chamber with additional ceramic powder such that the sintered assembly is disposed between the additional ceramic powder and the sintered substrate part; and

hot pressing the sintered assembly, the functional element, the material layer, the additional ceramic powder and the sintered substrate part to form the monolithic substrate, wherein the first and second slugs, the functional element and the material layer are embedded in the monolithic substrate.

12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the step of forming the monolithic substrate further comprises placing a mixture of ceramic powder and sintering aide between the sintered assembly and the sintered substrate part.

13. The method according to claim 11 , further comprising drilling holes through the monolithic substrate to allow access to the second slugs.

14. The method according to claim 13 , further comprising connecting lead wires to the second slugs.

15. A method of constructing a heater comprising the steps of:

forming a sintered assembly including a ceramic substrate and a plurality of first slugs embedded therein;

forming at least one trench into one of the opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly and into a part of the plurality of first slugs; and

depositing a functional material into the at least one trench to form a functional element such that the functional element is connected to the plurality of first slugs;

applying a material layer on the other one of the opposing surfaces of the functional element, the material layer being connected to the first slugs; and

forming a monolithic substrate in which the functional element, the first slugs, and the material layer are embedded.

16. The method according to claim 15 , wherein the sintered assembly further includes a plurality of second slugs having a smaller length than the plurality of first slugs.

17. The method according to claim 16 , wherein the step of forming the sintered assembly comprises:

placing the plurality of first slugs and the plurality of second slugs in an isostatic press chamber;

filling the isostatic press chamber with ceramic powder; and

hot pressing the ceramic powder and the plurality of first and second slugs to form a sintered assembly, wherein the first and second slugs extend along a thickness direction of the sintered assembly.

18. The method according to claim 17 further comprising applying at least one of ceramic powder and a sintered substrate part on the opposing surfaces of the sintered assembly, and hot pressing the at least one of ceramic powder and a sintered substrate with the sintered assembly to form the heater with the monolithic substrate.

19. The method according to claim 17 , further comprising drilling holes through the monolithic substrate to allow access to the second slugs.

20. A heater formed according to the method of claim 1 .