Bump structure for a semiconductor device and method of manufacture
A semiconductor device employing the bump structure includes a plurality of bump structures arrayed along a substrate in a first direction. Each bump structure has a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bump structures, and at least one bump structure has a sidewall facing in the first direction that is non-conductive.
A number of different techniques exist for providing electrical connection between a semiconductor chip or package and a circuit board or other substrate. The current trend in many of these techniques is the use of solder bumps to form electrical connections instead of wire bonding. For example, bumps are used in such techniques as tape carrier package (TCP), chip on film (COF), and chip on glass (COG). Often techniques such as TCP and COF are more broadly referred to as tape automated bonding (TAB).
While bumps provide an advantage over wire bonding by allowing for a reduction in the spacing between the solder bumps as compared to the spacing between wire bonds, even bump techniques face potential limitations on the spacing between the bumps. For example, in the COG technique, a semiconductor chip (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) driver integrated circuit (IC) package) may be bonded directly to the LCD substrate. In this technique, ACF (anisotropic conductive film) tape is disposed between pads of the LCD substrate and the associated bumps on the driver IC package to form the electrical connection. ACF tape contains electrically conductive particles that are embedded in an insulating material. The conductive particles provide electrical connection between the solder bumps and the pads on the LCD substrate. As the gap between bumps, however, becomes smaller, the particles in the ACF tape may provide electrical connection between bumps; thus, causing a short circuit.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention provides a bump structure that removes barriers on the spacing between solder bumps of semiconductor chips or packages. As such, the present invention allows for smaller and thinner semiconductor devices.
In one exemplary embodiment, a plurality of bump structures are arrayed along a substrate in a first direction. Each bump structure has a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bump structures. The pitch gap may be thought of as a gap measured at the substrate along the first direction between planes of facing sidewalls of the successively arrayed bump structures. At least one bump structure has a sidewall facing in the first direction that is non-conductive. Because the sidewall is non-conductive, conductive particles disposed between this bump and the bump adjacent to the non-conductive sidewall should not form a short circuit between the two bumps.
In one exemplary embodiment, each bump structure has at least one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction.
In another exemplary embodiment, each bump structure has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls facing in the first direction.
In a further exemplary embodiment, each bump structure has one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction and one conductive sidewall facing in the first direction such that the conductive sidewall does not face the conductive sidewall of another bump structure.
In a still further exemplary embodiment, the array of bump structures alternate from a first type to a second type. The bump structure of the first type has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls that face in the first direction, and the bump structure of the second type has two oppositely facing conductive sidewalls that face in the first direction.
In association with any of the above described embodiments, the successively arrayed bump structures may be disposed offset from one another in a second direction along the substrate.
An exemplary embodiment,of the, present invention also includes a plurality of bumps arrayed along a substrate in a first direction and a plurality of conductive lines formed in a second direction. Each conductive line is associated with one of the bumps, and each conductive line is disposed over a top surface of the associated bump and over two oppositely facing sidewalls of the bump; the two oppositely facing sidewalls facing in the second direction. Each conductive line extends over the substrate from each of the two oppositely facing sidewalls. Because of this, the conductive line assists in maintaining the associated bump adhered to the substrate.
Other exemplary embodiments of the present invention provide for methods of forming the above described embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below and the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements are represented by like reference numerals, which are given by way of illustration only and thus are not limiting of the present invention and wherein:
The present invention provides a bump structure that removes barriers on the spacing between solder bumps of semiconductor chips or packages. As such, the present invention allows for smaller and thinner semiconductor devices. First, several structual embodiments according to the present invention will be described followed by a description of a method for forming a bump structure according to the present invention.
First Structural Embodiment
In one example embodiment, each bump 102 has a height H of 2 to 30 um, a width Wb of 10 to 50 um and a length of 20 to 200 um.
Each bump structure 100 also includes a conductive layer 108 disposed over a top surface of an associated bump 102 and each sidewall 106 facing in the second direction. The conductive layer 108 on the bump 102 forms part of a conductive line 110 that extends a shorter distance over the substrate 200 from one sidewall 104, and extends a longer distance over the substrate 200 from the other sidewall 104. As shown, the conductive line 110 extends in the second direction. The longer extension of the conductive line 110 leads to an associated chip pad 204 where the conductive layer 110 is electrically connected to the associated pad 204. As will be appreciated the pad 204 provides electrical connection between the conductive line 110 and circuitry (not shown) formed on the substrate 200.
Because the pitch gap PG is less than the width WBb of the bump structure 100, a short circuit when using, for example, an ACF tape might be expected. However, because the sidewalls 104 of the bump structures 100 facing in the first direction are non-conductive, such short circuits are prevented. Consequently, the present invention provides a bump structure that removes barriers on the spacing between solder bumps of semiconductor chips or packages. As such, the present invention allows for smaller and thinner semiconductor devices.
Second Structural Embodiment
Because one of the sidewalls 104 of the bump structures 100 facing in the first direction are non-conductive, short circuits are prevented. Consequently, the present invention provides a bump structure that removes barriers on the spacing between solder bumps of semiconductor chips or packages. As such, the present invention allows for smaller and thinner semiconductor devices.
Third Structural Embodiment
As will be appreciated, offsetting the bump structures 100 as shown in
While the embodiment of
Furthermore, while two groups o,f aligned bump structures have been illustrated, it will be appreciated that more than two groups of bump structures, each offset from the other, may be formed.
Next, a method of fabricating a semiconductor device having a bump structure according to the present invention will be described. For the purposes of example only, the method will be described with respect to the fabrication of the bump structure 100 illustrated in
As shown in
Next, a dielectric layer such as polyimide, BCB (Benzo Cyclo Butane), PBO (polybenzo oxazole), photosensitive resin, etc. is formed over the substrates; for example, by spin coating. The dielectric layer may be formed to a thickness of 2-30 um. Then, the dielectric layer is patterned using a mask to form non-conductive bumps 102 as shown in
As shown in
Next, as shown in
The second metal layer 160 may be formed to a thickness of 1-10 um. In one example embodiment, the combined thickness of the first and second metal layers 140 and 160 is less than 10 um. The second metal layer 160 may be formed of Au, Ni, Cu, Pd, Ag, etc., or multiple layers of these metals by electro plating, for example.
Afterwards, the photoresist pattern 150 is removed as shown in
The bump structures and method of fabrication described above may be applied to any technique in which bumps are used such as tape carrier package (TCP), chip on film (COF), and chip on glass (COG). Also, the bump structures and method of fabrication described above may be applied to the manufacture of any semiconductor chip or package (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) driver integrated circuit (IC) package).
The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the invention, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A semiconductor device, comprising:
- a plurality of bump structures arrayed along a substrate in a first direction, each bump structure having a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bump structures, and at least one bump structure having a sidewall facing in the first direction that is non-conductive.
2. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein each bump structure has at least one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction.
3. The semiconductor device of claim 2, wherein each bump structure has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls facing in the first direction.
4. The semiconductor device of claim 3, wherein each bump structure includes a conductive layer disposed over a top surface of the bump structure and disposed over at least one sidewall of the bump structure that faces in a second direction, the conductive layer extending from the sidewall facing in the second direction over a portion of the substrate.
5. The semiconductor device of claim 4, wherein each conductive layer is electrically connected to an associated pad on the substrate, the associated pad being disposed away from the associated bump structure.
6. The semiconductor device of claim 4, wherein each conductive layer includes at least a lower metal layer and an upper metal layer.
7. The semiconductor device of claim 4, wherein successively arrayed bump structures are disposed offset from one another in the second direction along the substrate.
8. The semiconductor device of claim 7, wherein the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
9. The semiconductor device of claim 2, wherein each bump structure has one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction and one conductive sidewall facing in the first direction such that the conductive sidewall does not face the conductive sidewall of another bump structure.
10. The semiconductor device of claim 9, wherein each bump structure includes a conductive layer disposed over a top surface of the bump structure and disposed over at least one sidewall of the bump structure that faces in a second direction, the conductive layer extending from the sidewall facing in the second direction over a portion of the substrate.
11. The semiconductor device of claim 10, wherein each conductive layer is electrically connected to an associated pad on the substrate, the associated pad being disposed away from the associated bump structure.
12. The semiconductor device of claim 10, wherein each conductive layer includes at least a lower metal layer and an upper metal layer.
13. The semiconductor device of claim 10, wherein successively arrayed bump structures are disposed offset from one another in the second direction along the substrate.
14. The semiconductor device of claim 13, wherein the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
15. The semiconductor device of claim 1, Wherein the array of bump structures alternate from a first type to a second type, the bump structure of the first type has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls that face in the first direction, and the bump structure of the second type has each sidewall being conductive.
16. The semiconductor device of claim 15, wherein each bump structure includes a conductive layer disposed over a top surface of the bump structure and disposed over at least one sidewall of the bump structure that faces in a second direction, the conductive layer extending from the sidewall facing in the second direction over a portion of the substrate.
17. The semiconductor device of claim 16, wherein each conductive layer is electrically connected to an associated pad on the substrate, the associated pad being disposed away from the associated bump structure.
18. The semiconductor device of claim 16, wherein each conductive layer includes at least a lower metal layer and an upper metal layer.
19. The semiconductor device of claim 16, wherein successively arrayed bump structures are disposed offset from one another in the second direction along the substrate.
20. The semiconductor device of claim 19, wherein the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
21. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein each bump structure includes a conductive layer disposed over a top surface of the bump structure and disposed over at least one sidewall of the bump structure that faces in a second direction, the conductive layer extending from the sidewall facing in the second direction over a portion of the substrate.
22. The semiconductor device of claim 21, wherein each conductive layer is electrically connected to an associated pad on the substrate, the associated pad being disposed away from the associated bump structure.
23. The semiconductor device of claim 21, wherein each conductive layer includes at least a lower metal layer and an upper metal layer.
24. The semiconductor device of claim 23, wherein the lower metal layer has a thickness of 0.05 to 1 um, and the upper metal layer has a thickness of 1 to 10 um.
25. The semiconductor device of claim 23, wherein the lower metal layer includes at least one of TiW, Cr, Cu, Ti, Ni, NiV, Pd, Cr/Cu, TiW/Cu, TiW/Au, and NiV/Cu, and the upper metal layer includes at least one of Au, Ni, Cu, Pd, Ag, and Pt.
26. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein successively arrayed bump structures are disposed offset from one another in a second direction along the substrate.
27. The semiconductor device of claim 26, wherein the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
28. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein the bump structures have a width of 10 to 50 um.
29. The semiconductor device of claim 1, wherein each bump structure includes a non-conductive bump and a conductive material disposed on at least a top surface of the non-conductive bump.
30. The semiconductor device of claim 29, wherein each bump has a height of 2-30 um.
31. The semiconductor device of claim 29, wherein each bump structure includes the conductive material disposed on two oppositely facing sidewalls that face in the second direction, and the conductive material extends over the substrate from each of the two oppositely facing sidewalls.
32. The semiconductor device of claim 29, wherein each bump includes one of a polyimide, benzo cyclo butane, poly benzoxazole, and photosensitive resin.
33. A semiconductor device, comprising:
- a plurality of bumps arrayed along a substrate in a first direction;
- a plurality of conductive lines formed in a second direction, each conductive line associated with one of the bumps, each conductive line disposed over a top surface of the associated bump and disposed over two oppositely facing sidewalls of the bump that face in the second direction, and each conductive line extending over the substrate from each of the two oppositely facing sidewalls.
34. A semiconductor device, comprising:
- a plurality of bumps arrayed along a substrate in a first direction, each bump having a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bumps; and
- a plurality of conductive lines formed in a second direction, each conductive line associated with one of the bumps, each conductive line disposed over a top surface of the associated bump and disposed over a sidewall of the associated bump that faces in the second direction, and each conductive line extending over the substrate from the sidewall facing in the second direction.
35. A method of forming a semiconductor device, comprising:
- forming a plurality of bump structures arrayed along a substrate in a first direction, each bump structure having a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bump structures, and at least one bump structure having a sidewall facing in the first direction that is non-conductive.
36. The method of claim 35, wherein the forming step comprises:
- forming a plurality of bumps arrayed along the substrate in the first direction; and
- forming a conductive line associated with each bump in a second direction, each conductive line disposed over a top surface of the associated bump and disposed over a sidewall of the associated bump that faces in the second direction, and each conductive line extending over the substrate from the sidewall facing in the second direction.
37. The method of claim 35, wherein the forming a plurality of bumps step comprises:
- spin coating a bump material on the substrate; and
- patterning the bump material to form the plurality of bumps.
38. The method of claim 37, wherein each bump includes one of a polyimide, benzo cyclo butane, poly benzoxazole, and photosensitive resin.
39. The method of claim 37, wherein the patterning step forms the plurality of bumps such that each bump has a width of 10 to 50 um.
40. The method of claim 37, wherein the patterning step forms the plurality of bumps such that each bump has a height of 2-30 um.
41. The method of claim 35, wherein each conductive line includes at least a lower metal layer and an upper metal layer.
42. The method of claim 41, wherein the lower metal layer has a thickness of 0.05 to 1 um, and the upper metal layer has a thickness of 1 to 10 um.
43. The method of claim 41, wherein the lower metal layer includes at least one of TiW, Cr, Cu, Ti, Ni, NiV, Pd, Cr/Cu, TiW/Cu, TiW/Au, and NiV/Cu, and the upper metal layer includes at least one of Au, Ni, Cu, Pd, Ag, and Pt.
44. The method of claim 41, wherein the forming a conductive line step comprises:
- forming the lower metal layer; and
- electroplating the lower metal layer with an upper metal layer material to form the upper metal layer.
45. The semiconductor device of claim 35, wherein each bump structure has at least one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction.
46. The semiconductor device of claim 35, wherein each bump structure has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls facing in the first direction.
47. The semiconductor device of claim 35, wherein each bump structure has one non-conductive sidewall facing in the first direction and one conductive sidewall facing in the first direction such that the conductive sidewall does not face the conductive sidewall of another bump structure.
48. The semiconductor device of claim 35, wherein the array of bump structures alternate from a first type to a second type, the bump structure of the first type has two oppositely facing non-conductive sidewalls that face in the first direction, and the bump structure of the second type has each sidewall being conductive.
49. A method of forming a semiconductor device, comprising:
- forming a plurality of bumps arrayed along a substrate in a first direction, each bump having a width in the first direction greater than a pitch gap between successively arrayed bumps; and
- forming a plurality of conductive lines formed in a second direction, each conductive line associated with one of the bumps, each conductive line disposed over a top surface of the associated bump and disposed over a sidewall of the associated bump that faces in the second direction, and each conductive line extending over the substrate from the sidewall facing in the second direction.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 29, 2005
Publication Date: Oct 20, 2005
Inventors: Yonghwan Kwon (Suwon-City), Chungsun Lee (Anyang-City), Sayoon Kang (Seoul-City)
Application Number: 11/091,869