Abstract: Effective passivation structures and guard rings can be formed in borderless gate arrays by forming the gates in an array of discrete blocks separated by thin scribe lines in which the substrate is not covered by gates. Diffusions for guard rings can be formed in the substrate for guard ring purposes, and passivation structures can be sealingly attached to the substrate. Various circuit metalizations such as discrete layers or different circuits can be produced with a single mask by covering all but a selected portion of the mask during exposure.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
April 12, 1999
Date of Patent:
April 16, 2002
Assignee:
Tanner Research, Inc.
Inventors:
Massimo Antonio Sivilotti, John Edward Tanner, Jin Luo