Microfabrication is the process of fabrication of miniature structures of
micrometre scales and smaller. Historically, the earliest microfabrication processes were used for
integrated circuit fabrication, also known as "
semiconductor manufacturing" or "semiconductor device fabrication". In the last two decades
microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), microsystems (European usage),
micromachines (Japanese terminology) and their subfields, microfluidics/lab-on-a-chip, optical MEMS (also called MOEMS), RF MEMS, PowerMEMS, BioMEMS and their extension into nanoscale (for example NEMS, for nano electro mechanical systems) have re-used, adapted or extended microfabrication methods. Flat-panel displays and solar cells are also using similar techniques.