Abstract: A semiconductor imager chip is mated directly to a laminate-type substrate, such as a printed circuit board. A well is formed by placing a retaining wall on the printed circuit board around the imager chip. An optical material such as a clear polymer is injected into the well to cover the imager chip. After the clear polymer cures (hardens) the retaining wall may be removed. The optical material may also have light filtering or other optical properties in addition to transmissivity. The printed circuit board may have one or more layers. Some of such layers may comprise a ground-plane. High speed digital and analog lines may be strategically routed on the one or more layers to minimize interference with adjacent signal lines. Traditional sockets that receive ceramic or plastic chip carrier packages may be used in embodiments to receive the resultant printed circuit board based chip carrier. The circuit board may comprise a typical multi-component PCB or a chip-on-board carrier design.

Abstract: A semiconductor die with an imager sensor on an integrated circuit (IC) is mated directly to a substrate, such as a printed circuit board or any traditional chip carrier. A retaining well is built by adding an elevated structure about the mated IC chip with an inexpensive epoxy compound, forming a recess in which the IC is disposed. Thereafter, a coating layer of a viscous epoxy is added to the well and allowed to cure. The coating is clear, allowing light to pass to the IC chip. The epoxy along with the substrate encapsulates the IC chip, providing an easy and inexpensive chip package. The substrate may comprise a laminate substrate that is preprinted with easily reconfigurable leads and multi-layer routing arranged to minimize noise and cross-talk. The coating, or an additional coating placed on top of or underneath the clear coating, may also perform filtering of one or more portions of the light spectrum.