Abstract: A serpentine pattern has been found to be effective at interrupting propagation of delamination cracks in thin film layers. The ring is provided on a semiconductor chip to suppress crack propagation from the chip edge. The ring is effective even though it is filled with metal, the serpentine pattern providing significantly increased area as compared with a standard linear crack stop that the energy for crack propagation is dissipated. In addition to serpentines, pattern features such as staggered filled ring patterns and connected rings will also be effective at reducing the propagation of delamination cracks from edge to active area by virtue of the increased area of interaction between the crack and the crack stop.