Abstract: A method of using sacrificial structures in a mold substrate for packaging a first die and one or more second dies or stacks thereof is disclosed. The method allows testing of the first die prior to mounting the second dies, without requiring a TSV insert. In one aspect, a block of sacrificial material is embedded together with the first die in a first mold substrate and to one side of the first die. The removal of the block creates an opening. The method is configured so that contacts are exposed at the bottom of the opening, the contacts being electrically connected to corresponding contacts on the first die. This may be realized by bonding both the die and the sacrificial block to a redistribution layer, or by mounting a bridge device between the first die and the block prior to a first overmolding applied for producing the first mold substrate.

Abstract: An optical device and a method for fabricating an optical device are described. The optical device may be a light emitting diode (LED) device, e.g. a micro-LED (?LED) device, or a photodiode (PD) device, e.g. an imager. The method comprises processing, on a first semiconductor wafer, an array including a plurality of compound semiconductor LEDs or compound semiconductor PDs and a plurality of first contacts, each first contact being electrically connected to one of the LEDs or PDs. The method further comprises processing, on a second semiconductor wafer, a CMOS IC and a plurality of second contacts electrically connected to the CMOS IC. The method further comprises hybrid bonding the first semiconductor wafer to the second semiconductor wafer such that the plurality of LEDs or PDs are individually connected to the CMOS IC via the first and second contacts.

Abstract: A method for producing an integrated circuit (IC) chip on a semiconductor device wafer is disclosed. In one aspect, the IC chip includes buried interconnect rails in the front end of line and a power delivery network (PDN) on the back side of the chip. The PDN is connected to the front side by micro-sized through semiconductor via (TSV) connections through the thinned semiconductor wafer. The production of the TSVs is integrated in the process flow for fabricating the interconnect rails, with the TSVs being produced in a self-aligned manner relative to the interconnect rails. After bonding the device wafer to a landing wafer, the semiconductor layer onto which the active devices of the chip have been produced is thinned from the back side, and the TSVs are exposed. The self-aligned manner of producing the TSVs enables scaling down the process towards smaller dimensions without losing accurate positioning of the TSVs.

Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) chip having power and ground rails incorporated in the front end of line (FEOL) is disclosed. In one aspect, these power and ground rails are at the same level as the active devices and are therefore buried deep in the IC, as seen from the front of the chip. The connection from the buried interconnects to the source and drain areas is established by local interconnects. These local interconnects are not part of the back end of line, but they are for the most part embedded in a pre-metal dielectric layer onto which the BEOL is produced. In a further aspect, a power delivery network (PDN) of the IC is located in its entirety on the backside of the chip. The PDN is connected to the buried interconnects through suitable connections, for example metal-filled through-semiconductor vias or through silicon vias.

Abstract: A method for packaging semiconductor dies by overmolding is disclosed. The dies are embedded in a substrate of a mold material, and cavities are produced in the mold substrate by producing 3D structures of a sacrificial material prior to the overmolding step. Afterwards, the sacrificial material is removed to thereby create cavities in the mold substrate. A conformal layer is produced on the 3D structures prior to overmolding, and the mold substrate is thinned to expose an upper surface of the 3D structures. The conformal layer is not removed when the sacrificial structures are removed. In this way, the conformal layer remains on the surfaces of the mold substrate inside the cavity. In one aspect, the conformal layer may have a protective function, useful in the production of packages including dies which come into contact with fluid substances.

Abstract: A liquid cooling system for cooling an electronic device comprising a chip or a chip package comprising a chip is described. The liquid cooling system comprises an inlet plenum comprising a coolant feeding channel oriented substantially parallel with the plane of a main surface to be cooled of the chip and a plurality of inlet cooling channels fluidically connected to the coolant feeding channel and arranged vertically for impinging a liquid coolant directly on said main surface of the chip. The vertically oriented inlet cooling channels are substantially parallel to vertically oriented outlet cooling channels and are separated by a thermally isolating material. The liquid cooling system further comprises at least one cavity wherein a plurality of inlet and outlet cooling channels end. The cavity is arranged for allowing interaction between the liquid coolant and the main surface of the chip and thus comprises a heat transfer region.

Abstract: Provided herein is a method for producing hollow contact areas for insertion bonding, formed on a semiconductor substrate comprising a stack of one or more metallization layers on a surface of the substrate. Openings are etched in a dielectric layer by plasma etching, using a resist layer as a mask. The resist layer and plasma etch parameters are chosen to obtain openings with sloped sidewalls having a pre-defined slope, due to controlled formation of a polymer layer forming on the sidewalls of the resist hole and the hollow contact opening formed during etching. According to a preferred embodiment, metal deposited in the hollow contact areas and on top of the dielectric layer is planarized using chemical mechanical polishing, leading to mutually isolated contact areas. The disclosure is also related to components obtainable by the method and to a semiconductor package comprising such components.

Abstract: A method is disclosed for packaging a device, e.g., for bio-medical applications. In one aspect, the method includes obtaining a component on a substrate and separating the component and a first part of the substrate from a second part of the substrate using at least one physical process inducing at least one sloped side wall on the first part of the substrate. The method also includes providing an encapsulation for the chip. The resulting packaged chip advantageously has a good step coverage resulting in a good hermeticity, less sharp edges resulting in a reduced risk of damaging or infection after implantation and has a relatively small packaged volume compared to conventional big box packaging techniques.

Abstract: The disclosed technology relates generally to a semiconductor device package comprising a metal-insulator-metal capacitor (MIMCAP). In one aspect, the MIMCAP comprises portions of a first and second metallization layers in a stack of metallization layers, e.g., copper metallization layers formed by single damascene processes. The MIMCAP comprises a bottom plate formed in the first metallization layer, a first conductive layer on and in electrical contact with the bottom plate, a dielectric layer on and in contact with the first conductive layer, a second conductive layer on and in contact with the dielectric layer, and a top plate formed in the second metallization layer, on and in electrical contact with the second metal plate. The electrical contacts to the bottom and top plates of the MIMCAP formed in the first and second metallization layer are thereby established without forming separate vias between the plates and the metallization layers.

Abstract: A method for bonding and interconnecting two or more IC devices arranged on substrates such as silicon wafers is disclosed. In one aspect, the wafers are bonded by a direct bonding technique to form a wafer assembly, and the multiple IC devices are provided with metal contact structures. At least the upper substrate is provided prior to bonding with a cavity in its bonding surface. A TSV (Through Semiconductor Via) is produced through the bonded wafer assembly and an aggregate opening is formed including the TSV opening and the cavity. After the formation of an isolation liner on at least part of the sidewalls of the aggregate opening (that is, at least on the part where the liner isolates the aggregate opening from semiconductor material), a TSV interconnection plug is produced in the aggregate opening.

Abstract: The disclosed technology generally relates to semiconductor wafer bonding, and more particularly to direct bonding by contacting surfaces of the semiconductor wafers. In one aspect, a method for bonding a first semiconductor substrate to a second semiconductor substrate by direct bonding is described. The substrates are both provided on their contact surfaces with a dielectric layer, followed by a CMP step for reducing the roughness of the dielectric layer. Then a layer of SiCN is deposited onto the dielectric layer, followed by a CMP step which reduces the roughness of the SiCN layer to the order of 1 tenth of a nanometer. Then the substrates are subjected to a pre-bond annealing step and then bonded by direct bonding, possibly preceded by one or more pre-treatments of the contact surfaces, and followed by a post-bond annealing step, at a temperature of less than or equal to 250° C.

Abstract: The invention relates to a substrate having at least one main surface comprising at least one non-noble metallic bonding landing pad covered by a capping layer thereby shielding the non-noble metallic bonding landing pad from the environment. This capping layer comprises an alloy, the alloy being NiB or CoB and containing an atomic concentration percentage of boron in the range of 10% to 50%.

Abstract: The disclosed technology generally relates to integrating semiconductor dies and more particularly to bonding semiconductor substrates. In an aspect, a method of bonding semiconductor substrates includes providing a first substrate and a second substrate. Each of the first substrate and the second substrate comprises a dielectric bonding layer comprising one or more a silicon carbon oxide (SiCO) layer, a silicon carbon nitride (SiCN) layer or a silicon carbide (SiC) layer. The method additionally includes, prior to bonding the first and second substrates, pre-treating each of the dielectric bonding layer of the first substrate and the dielectric bonding layer of the second substrate. Pre-treating includes a first plasma activation process in a plasma comprising an inert gas, a second plasma activation process in a plasma comprising oxygen, and a wet surface treatment including a water rinsing step or an exposure to a water-containing ambient.

Abstract: An integrated circuit (IC) chip having power and ground rails incorporated in the front end of line (FEOL) is disclosed. In one aspect, these power and ground rails are at the same level as the active devices and are therefore buried deep in the IC, as seen from the front of the chip. The connection from the buried interconnects to the source and drain areas is established by local interconnects. These local interconnects are not part of the back end of line, but they are for the most part embedded in a pre-metal dielectric layer onto which the BEOL is produced. In a further aspect, a power delivery network (PDN) of the IC is located in its entirety on the backside of the chip. The PDN is connected to the buried interconnects through suitable connections, for example metal-filled through-semiconductor vias or through silicon vias.

Abstract: A method for producing a stack of semiconductor devices and the stacked device obtained thereof are disclosed. In one aspect, the method includes providing a first semiconductor device comprising a dielectric layer with a hole, the hole lined with a metal layer and partially filled with solder material. The method also includes providing a second semiconductor device with a compliant layer having a metal protrusion through the compliant layer, the protrusion capped with a capping layer. The method further includes mounting the devices by landing the metal protrusion in the hole, where the compliant layer is spaced from the dielectric layer. The method includes thereafter reflowing the solder material, thereby bonding the devices such that the compliant layer is contacting the dielectric layer.

Abstract: A method for bonding chips to a landing wafer is disclosed. In one aspect, a volume of alignment liquid is dispensed on a wettable surface of the chip so as to become attached to the surface, after which the chip is moved towards the bonding site on the wafer, the bonding site equally being provided with a wettable surface. A liquid bridge is formed between the chip and the bonding site on the substrate wafer, enabling self-alignment of the chip. Dispensing alignment liquid on the chip and not the wafer is advantageous in terms of mitigating unwanted evaporation of the liquid prior to bonding.

Abstract: A package including a first die embedded in a reconstructed wafer obtainable by the known FO-WLP or eWLB technologies is disclosed. In one aspect and in addition to the first die, a Through Substrate Via insert is embedded in the wafer, the TSV insert being a separate element, possibly a silicon die with metal filled vias interconnecting contacts on the front and back sides of the insert. A second die is mounted on the back side of the substrate, with contacts on the second die in electrical connection with the TSV insert's contacts on the back side of the substrate. On the front side of the substrate, a lateral connecting device is mounted which interconnects the TSV insert's contacts on the front side of the substrate to contacts on the front side of the first die. The lateral connecting device and the TSV insert thereby effectively interconnect the contacts on the first and second dies.

Abstract: A method for bonding and interconnecting two or more IC devices arranged on substrates such as silicon wafers is disclosed. In one aspect, the wafers are bonded by a direct bonding technique to form a wafer assembly, and the multiple IC devices are provided with metal contact structures. A TSV (Through Semiconductor Via) is produced through the bonded wafer assembly. The IC device or devices in the upper wafer or wafers have contact structures that serve as masks for the etching of the TSV opening. A conformal isolation liner is deposited in the TSV opening, and subsequently removed from the bottom and any horizontal areas in the TSV opening, while maintaining the liner on the sidewalls, followed by deposition of a TSV plug in the TSV opening. The removal of the liner is done without applying a lithography step.

Abstract: A method for bonding and interconnecting two or more IC devices arranged on substrates such as silicon wafers is disclosed. In one aspect, the wafers are bonded by a direct bonding technique to form a wafer assembly, and the multiple IC devices are provided with metal contact structures. At least the upper substrate is provided prior to bonding with a cavity in its bonding surface. A TSV (Through Semiconductor Via) is produced through the bonded wafer assembly and an aggregate opening is formed including the TSV opening and the cavity. After the formation of an isolation liner on at least part of the sidewalls of the aggregate opening (that is, at least on the part where the liner isolates the aggregate opening from semiconductor material), a TSV interconnection plug is produced in the aggregate opening.

Abstract: A package including a first die embedded in a reconstructed wafer obtainable by the known FO-WLP or eWLB technologies is disclosed. In one aspect and in addition to the first die, a Through Substrate Via insert is embedded in the wafer, the TSV insert being a separate element, possibly a silicon die with metal filled vias interconnecting contacts on the front and back sides of the insert. A second die is mounted on the back side of the substrate, with contacts on the second die in electrical connection with the TSV insert's contacts on the back side of the substrate. On the front side of the substrate, a lateral connecting device is mounted which interconnects the TSV insert's contacts on the front side of the substrate to contacts on the front side of the first die. The lateral connecting device and the TSV insert thereby effectively interconnect the contacts on the first and second dies.