Direct attach chip scale package
A reliable, chip scale or flip chip semiconductor device which can be directly attached to a PC board without the use of an underfill material to absorb stress on the solder joints interconnecting the device and board is provided by a silicon chip, having the substrate thinned until the chip thickness is in the range of 50 to 250 microns, attaching a backing or cap layer with specific thermal properties to approximate those of a printed circuit board (PCB), and providing solder bump contacts attached to the input/output terminals.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,560
Other Publications
John H. Lau & Shi-Wei Ricky Lee, Chip Scale Package, Design, Materials, Processes, Reliability and Applications, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1999
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThis invention generally relates to a semiconductor device, and more particularly to a Chip Scale Package for such a device.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONTypically in the electronic component world, integrated circuits (IC's) are fabricated on a semiconductor substrate, known as a chip, and most commonly are made of silicon. The silicon chip is typically assembled into a larger package which serves to provide effective enlargement of the distance or pitch between input/output contacts of the silicon making it suitable for attachment to a printed circuit board, and to protect the IC from mechanical and environmental damage. With the trend moving to more and more features packed into decreasing product envelopes, utilizing ever smaller electronic components to improve upon size and feature densification a constant and formidable challenge is presented to manufacturers of consumer and related articles.
Recently the semiconductor industry has introduced reduced package sizes, such as those in area array format Vs more typical peripheral attach of the input and output (I/O) terminals as in lead frame construction. However, the area on the printed circuit board (PCB) occupied by the package is still much larger than the area occupied by the silicon chip. The challenge to reduce size and increase density has been felt by the printed circuit board industry, and as resulted in finer lines and closer pad spacing for IC device contacts.
Not only is area of the device of concern, but also the height or thickness, and the overall weight. These issues have been of particular concern to the variety of portable electronic products in use and under development. Integrated circuit chips, as well as the assembled packages have become thinner. There were early concerns that thinning brittle silicon wafers onto which a plurality of chips have been fabricated would lead to an increase in breakage and yield loss. However, these fears were rapidly dispelled as it was realized that thinner wafers were somewhat compliant and were capable of being flexed without breakage. Methods to backlap or grind away the semiconductor substrate were developed for a number of applications. (*) U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,560
Many companies have been trying to solve the problem of excessive semiconductor package size, and associated performance loss by directly attaching the chip (DCA) to the board without use of a traditional package. However, they have met with varying degrees of success, and with numerous technical challenges not yet overcome.
Direct chip attach has been most commonly via solder bumps or balls from the input/output (I/O) contacts of the chip interconnecting to the PC Board, and providing both electrical and mechanical connections. Because the materials of the silicon chip and the PC board have different rates of thermal expansion, severe stresses are introduced to the solder connection between the rigid chip and the more thermally expansive board. The stresses caused by the thermal expansion coefficient (CTE) mismatch occur during solder reflow, and as power to the IC is cycled on and off. The stresses typically cause mechanical failure in one or more solder joints, and in turn result in electrical failure of the product.
Chip scale packages (CSP) were developed to provide an alternative solution to directly attached flip chips devices. These packages (CSP) represent a new miniature type of semiconductor packaging used to address the issues of size, weight, and performance in electronic products, especially those for consumer products such as telephones, pagers, portable computers, video cameras, etc. Standards have not yet been normalized for CSP, and as a result, many variations exist, and several of which are described in “Chip Scale Package”, cited above. In general, the chip is the dominant constituent of a CSP with the area of the package, being no more than 20% greater than the area of the chip itself, but the package has supporting features which make it more robust than direct attachment of a flip chip.
Unfortunately, many chip scale packages suffer similar solder fatigue failures as the DCA flip chip devices. To alleviate the problem, and distribute the stresses, a polymeric filler or under-encapsulant is introduced in liquid form by capillary action to surround the solder balls and fill the void between the chip or CSP and a PC board. The “underfill” cures to a rigid form via time, temperature, ultraviolet exposure, or some combination of theseof.
The “underfill” process has a number of drawbacks, including but not limited to the following: a tedious and time consuming process which must be accomplished by the IC customer, voids being entrapped under the device which lead to stress related failures, poor adhesion of the underfill to one or more of the components resulting in localized stresses, difficult if not impossible to rework process, and fillets of “underfill” material around the perimeter of the device which consume additional board space.
Accordingly, a need exists in the industry for a reliable, true chip scale package which eliminates the need for underfill.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIt is an object of the invention to provide a reliable, chip scale or flip chip semiconductor device which can be directly attached to a PC board without the use of an underfill material to absorb stress on the solder joints interconnecting the device and board.
It is an object of this invention to provide a semiconductor device having a coefficient of thermal expansion approximately equal to that of a printed circuit board, including an integrated circuit chip, and a backing layer.
It is also an object of the current invention to provide a true chip scale package having its perimeter equal to that of the semiconductor chip itself.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a CSP having a power or ground plane within the backing layer and contacting the chip backside.
It is an object of the invention to provide a true chip scale package win an incorporated heat spreader.
It is further an object of the invention to provide a chip scale package with a very thin silicon chip substrate having greater flexibility than conventional thickness of silicon chips, and which is therefore less subject to fracture.
A further object of the invention is to provide a CSP or flip chip device which can be removed and replaced after assembly onto a circuit board.
The objectives of the invention are accomplished by providing a silicon chip, having the substrate thinned until the chip thickness is in the range of 50 to 250 microns, attaching a backing or cap layer with specific thermal properties to approximate those of a printed circuit board (PCB), and providing solder bump contacts attached to the input/output terminals. Solder bumps are directly attached to input/output terminals of the chip, or are routed through vias in an interposer of a polymeric film attached to the active surface of the chip. The backside of the silicon wafer is reduced in thickness by chemical, mechanical, or chemical-mechanical means, such as are known in the art to provide the chip with a specified thickness. The backing layer comprising an organic, metal or composite material is laminated or molded in sufficient thickness so that the CTE of the combined silicon and backing are a near match to the circuit board, thereby minimizing stress on the solder joints. The perimeter of the backing layer is coincident with that of the chip, thereby forming a real chip scale package.
In a high performance embodiment, a layer of metal is affixed to the backing layer, electrical contact is made to active elements in the back of the chip, thereby providing a power or ground plane, and allowing improved performance of the circuit at little to no additional cost.
In yet another embodiment, the backing layer is fabricated of a thermally conductive material and irregular shape to provide improved thermal dissipation from the chip backside.
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which proceeds with references to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The device in
The backing or cap layer 103 is affixed to the second surface 12 of the chip using such techniques as laminating or molding. The design and material properties of the backing layer 103, coupled with the less significant contribution of the thinned silicon chip, approximate the thermal expansion characteristics of a printed circuit board 110. This feature is in contrast to existing flip chip or chip scale packages in which the thermal properties of the silicon chip are dominant, and the low expansion of the chip versus the much higher expansion of the circuit board results in stresses on the solder joints which in turn require a costly underfill material and process.
Silicon chips thinned to 50 to 250 microns provide an unusual approach for packaging semiconductor chips. For comparison, typically silicon wafers are processed at approximately 0.7 to 0.8 mm thickness, and are thinned to 0.15 to 0.45 mm prior to assembly into packages. In the preferred embodiment, silicon is made unusually thin in order to allow the thermal properties of the backing layer or cap to become dominant over the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and elastic modulus of the silicon chip. The combined thermal properties of the thin silicon chip and the backing layer result in an effective CTE which is tailored to match or approximate that of the printed circuit board onto which the assemblage is to be attached.
Failure mechanisms in solder joints and the effects of thermal mismatch on solder joints have been discussed and analyzed for a number of years, and based on the preponderance of data, it is known that the thermal properties of the two opposing sides of an assemblage, such as an integrated circuit device and a printed circuit board must either be compensated by a compliant or stress absorbing substance, or the thermal properties of the components must be matched.
Given that the CTE of the silicon chip of the current invention is about 2.3×10-6 in/in and a typical printed wiring board of FR-4 is about 15×10-6 PPM, the CTE of the backing layer must slightly exceed that of the PCB. Thickness of the backing required to provide a match to the board is calculated based on chip area, and is generally in the range of 100 to 500 microns. Suitable materials for backing layers are comprised of metals, such as copper, composite materials such as filled polymers and molding compounds, or organic materials. Stress between the silicon and backing is mitigated by a low modulus backing or a compliant adhesive.
In a preferred embodiment, the backing layer 103 is laminated onto a fully processed silicon wafer having a plurality of integrated circuits. The wafer has been reduced in thickness by chemical, mechanical, or chemical-mechanical means known in the art to the calculated preferred thickness. A backing material formed in the circular shape of the silicon wafer has a thin adhesive on the surface which is mated to the wafer backside. Following lamination of the backing under heat and pressure, the wafer with attached backing is diced into a plurality of CSP devices. Alternately, the backing layer is molded onto the wafer backside using a composite molding compound.
In one embodiment shown in
In an alternate embodiment in
In
Integrated circuits are often designed and fabricated with active elements buried well below the surface, and which function more efficiently if those active elements are able to contacted to a power or ground plane directly. In particular, circuits requiring power or ground contact to buried elements are well suited for a CSP device, such as a high performance embodiment of the current invention illustrated
In yet another embodiment, the backing or cap layer 603 of a thermally enhanced CSP 620 may be formed with an array of raised areas which provide a means for improved thermal dissipation. The irregularly shaped backside layer 603 molded from a thermally conductive composite material, allows improved thermal dissipation by having an increased surface area for radiation cooling by the ambient, as well as forming channels for air flow. As with the previous embodiments, the thermal expansion of the combined silicon and backing layers are matched to that of a printed wiring board. High thermal conductivity backing layers are comprised of molded polymers compounded with such materials as carbon, particulate metallic, or conductive inorganic components.
A number of process options exist for fabricating a semiconductor device of the current invention; namely a reliable flip chip or CSP package for direct attachment to a printed circuit board. Most of the individual processes and materials of construction are known in the industry, but in the following steps are combined to fabricate a direct chip attach device of the current invention.
In the preferred embodiment, illustrated in
A preformed flex film interposer 733 having perimeter equal to that of the singulated device 702, is aligned to and positioned on first surface of the chip, heat 765 and pressure 766 are applied to laminate the film, and to complete curing of the adhesive to the backing layer, in
In an alternate embodiment, the wafer having a thin film dielectric with patterned metallization for I/O rerouting as shown in
Detailed descriptions of preferred embodiments are provided herein. It is to be understood that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriate detailed system, structure or manner.
Claims
1-9. (canceled)
10. A method of forming a direct attach semiconductor device including the following steps:
- a) providing a semiconductor wafer with a plurality of integrated circuits fabricated on the first surface, and thinning said wafer from the second surface to about 50 to 250 microns thick,
- b) laminating a backing layer, comprising a material having an expansion coefficient similar to that of a printed circuit board, onto the second surface of said wafer,
- c) dicing said wafer into individual chips,
- d) affixing a flex film interposer preformed to the chip size and shape to the active surface of said chip,
- e) thermally processing the assemblage to cross-link adhesives of both the backing and interposer layers, and
- f) attaching solder balls to input/output lands on the interposer.
11. A method of fabricating a direct attach semiconductor device as in claim 11 wherein a backing layer is molded onto the second surface of said diced chips.
12. A method of fabricating a direct attach semiconductor device wherein an interposer is fabricated on the first surface of said wafer by thin film metallization patterned on a thin film dielectric layer to reroute input/output contacts to a preselected area array,
- b) thinning said wafer from the backside to a thickness of 50 to 250 microns,
- c) laminating a backing layer comprising a material having an expansion coefficient similar to that of a printed circuit board onto the second surface of said wafer,
- d) dicing said wafer into individual chips,
- e) thermally processing the assemblage to cross-link adhesives of the backing layer, and
- f) attaching solder balls to input/output lands on the interposer.
13. A method of fabricating a direct attach semiconductor device wherein an interposer is fabricated on the first surface of said wafer by thin film metallization patterned on a thin film dielectric layer to reroute input/output contacts to a preselected area array, contacts to a preselected area array,
- b) thinning said wafer from the backside to a thickness of 50 to 250 microns,
- c) molding a backing layer having an expansion coefficient similar to that of a printed circuit board onto the second surface of said wafer,
- d) attaching solder balls to input/output lands on the interposer, and
- e) dicing said wafer into individual chips.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 24, 2005
Publication Date: Jun 30, 2005
Inventor: Masood Murtuza (Sugarland, TX)
Application Number: 11/065,493