U.S. patent application number 09/733823 was filed with the patent office on 2001-05-03 for chip scale surface mount package for semiconductor device and process of fabricating the same.
Invention is credited to Ho, Yueh-Se, Kasem, Y. Mohammed, Zandman, Felix.
Application Number | 20010000631 09/733823 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 23561666 |
Filed Date | 2001-05-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010000631 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Zandman, Felix ; et
al. |
May 3, 2001 |
Chip scale surface mount package for semiconductor device and
process of fabricating the same
Abstract
This semiconductor surface mount package is relatively
inexpensive to produce and has a footprint that is essentially the
same size as the die. A conductive substrate is attached to the
back side of a wafer and is in electrical contact with a terminal
on the back side of each die in the wafer. A nonconductive overcoat
is formed and patterned on the front side of the wafer, leaving a
portion of the passivation layer and the connection pads for the
dice exposed, each of the connection pads being coated with a
solderable metal layer. The assembly is then sawed in perpendicular
directions along the scribe lines between the dice, but the saw
cuts do not extend all the way through the substrate, which remains
intact at its back side. The parallel cuts in one direction are
broken to produce die strips which are mounted, sandwich-like, in a
stack, with one side of the strips exposed. A metal layer is
sputtered or evaporated on one side of the stack; the stack is
turned over and a similar process is performed on the other side of
the stack. The resulting metal layers are deposited on front side
of the die and extend along the edges of the die to the edges and
back side of the substrate. The metal is not deposited on the
surfaces of the overcoat. The strips in the stack are then
separated, and the saw cuts in the perpendicular direction are
broken to separate the individual dice. A thick metal layer is
plated on the sputtered or evaporated layers to establish a good
electrical connection between the front side and the terminal on
the back side of each die. The resulting package thus includes a
metal layer which wraps around the edges of the die to form an
electrical connection between a location on the front side of the
die and the conductive substrate. The package is essentially the
same size as the die. In an alternative embodiment, a nonconductive
substrate is used and vias are formed in the substrate and filled
with metal to make electrical contact with the terminal on the back
side of the die.
Inventors: |
Zandman, Felix; (Bala
Cynwyd, PA) ; Kasem, Y. Mohammed; (Santa Clara,
CA) ; Ho, Yueh-Se; (Sunnyvale, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
David E. Steuber
Skjerven Morrill MacPherson LLP
Suite 700
25 Metro Drive
San Jose
CA
95110
US
|
Family ID: |
23561666 |
Appl. No.: |
09/733823 |
Filed: |
December 8, 2000 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
09733823 |
Dec 8, 2000 |
|
|
|
09395095 |
Sep 13, 1999 |
|
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|
Current U.S.
Class: |
257/738 ;
257/341; 257/678; 257/E21.705; 257/E23.061; 257/E25.013; 438/106;
438/121 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 25/50 20130101;
H01L 2225/06513 20130101; H01L 25/0657 20130101; H01L 23/49805
20130101; H01L 2225/06517 20130101; H01L 2225/06586 20130101; H01L
2225/06551 20130101; H01L 2924/09701 20130101; H01L 2924/0002
20130101; H01L 2924/12044 20130101; H01L 2924/0002 20130101; H01L
2924/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
257/738 ;
257/678; 257/341; 438/106; 438/121 |
International
Class: |
H01L 021/48; H01L
029/76; H01L 029/94; H01L 023/02; H01L 031/062; H01L 029/40; H01L
023/48; H01L 023/52; H01L 021/50; H01L 021/44 |
Claims
We claim:
1. A process of fabricating a package for a semiconductor device
comprising: providing a semiconductor wafer including a plurality
of dice; forming an overcoat on a surface on a front side of the
wafer; patterning the overcoat to expose a connection pad on a
front side of the dice; attaching the wafer to a substrate;
separating the wafer into multichip strips, each strip containing a
plurality of dice; assembling the strips sandwich-like to form a
stack, with an edge of each die in the stack being exposed;
depositing at least a first metal layer on one side of the stack,
the first metal layer wrapping around an edge of a die to form an
electrical connection between a location on the front side of the
die and a device terminal on a back side of the die; disassembling
the stack into individual strips; and separating a strip into
individual dice.
2. The process of claim 1 comprising depositing at least a second
metal layer on an opposite side of the stack, the second metal
layer wrapping around an opposite edge of the die to form an
electrical connection between a second location on the front side
of the die and the device terminal on the back side of the die.
3. The process of claim 1 wherein separating the wafer into strips
comprises: cutting through the wafer and through a portion of the
substrate along a first set of parallel lines between the dice to
form a first set of partial cuts, the substrate remaining intact at
a back side of the substrate; and breaking the substrate along the
partial cuts.
4. The process of claim 3 wherein cutting comprises sawing.
5. The process of claim 3 wherein cutting comprises
photolithographic patterning and etching.
6. The process of claim 3 further comprising cutting through the
wafer and through a portion of the substrate between dice along a
second set of lines perpendicular to the first set of parallel
lines to form a second set of partial cuts before separating the
wafer into strips.
7. The process of claim 6 wherein separating a strip into
individual dice comprises breaking the strip along the second set
of partial cuts.
8. The process of claim 6 wherein the first set of partial cuts is
deeper than the second set of partial cuts.
9. The process of claim 1 wherein depositing at least a first metal
layer comprises sputtering.
10. The process of claim 1 wherein depositing at least a first
metal layer comprises evaporation.
11. The process of claim 1 wherein depositing the first metal layer
comprises depositing a first metal sublayer and depositing second
metal sublayer over the first metal sublayer.
12. The process of claim 11 wherein depositing the second metal
sublayer comprises plating.
13. The process of claim 1 wherein the connection pad located in an
interior region of the front side of the die, and wherein
assembling the strips to form a stack comprises sealing off the
connection pad.
14. The process of claim 1 comprising forming a solder ball in
electrical contact with the connection pad.
15. The process of claim 1 wherein the substrate is electrically
conductive.
16. The process of claim 15 wherein attaching the wafer to a
substrate comprises attaching the wafer to the substrate with an
electrically conductive cement.
17. The process of claim 1 wherein the substrate is electrically
nonconductive.
18. The process of claim 17 further comprising forming a via
entirely through the substrate and filling the via with an
electrically conductive material.
19. The process of claim 1 further comprising depositing at least
one layer of a solderable metal on the first connection pad.
20. The process of claim 19 further comprising removing an oxide
layer before depositing the layer of solderable metal.
21. The process of claim 1 wherein the semiconductor device
comprises a MOSFET.
22. The process of claim 1 wherein the semiconductor device
comprises a diode.
23. The process of claim 1 wherein the semiconductor device
comprises a JFET.
24. The process of claim 1 wherein the semiconductor device
comprises a bipolar transistor.
25. The process of claim 1 wherein the semiconductor device
comprises an IC.
26. A process of fabricating a package for a semiconductor device
comprising: providing a semiconductor wafer including a plurality
of dice; attaching a front side of the wafer to a first substrate;
processing the back side of the wafer so as to thin the wafer;
creating openings in the first substrate to expose connection pads
on a front side of the dice; attaching a back side of the wafer to
a second substrate to form a sandwich containing the wafer
interposed between the first and second substrates; separating the
sandwich into strips, each strip containing a plurality of dice;
assembling the strips together to form a stack, with one edge of
each die being exposed; depositing at least a first metal layer on
one side of the stack, the first metal layer wrapping around an
edge of a die to form an electrical connection between a location
on the front side of the die and a terminal on a back side of the
die; disassembling the stack into individual strips; and separating
a strip into individual dice.
27. The process of claim 26 wherein processing the back side of the
wafer comprises grinding.
28. The process of claim 26 wherein processing the back side of the
wafer comprises lapping.
29. The process of claim 26 wherein processing the back side of the
wafer comprises etching.
30. A process of fabricating a package for a semiconductor device
comprising: providing a semiconductor wafer including a plurality
of dice; attaching the wafer to a substrate; forming an overcoat on
a surface of the wafer; patterning the overcoat to expose
connection pads on a front side of the dice; separating the wafer
into multichip strips, each strip containing a plurality of dice;
forming an electrically conductive wraparound layer, the wraparound
layer wrapping around an edge of the die to form at least a portion
of an electrical path between a location on a front side of the die
and a device terminal at a back side of the die; and separating the
wafer into individual dice.
31. The process of claim 30 wherein the wraparound layer comprises
a conductive polymer.
32. The process of claim 30 wherein the wraparound layer comprises
a metal.
33. A process of forming an electrical connection between a
location on a front side of a semiconductor die and a device
terminal at a back side of the die comprising depositing at least
one metal layer extending from the location on the front die of the
die and around an edge of the die, the at least one metal layer
forming at least a portion of an electrical path between the
location on the front side of the die and the device terminal at
the back side of the die.
34. The process of claim 33 comprising attaching a conductive
substrate to the back side of the die, the at lest one metal layer
being in contact with the substrate.
35. A process of fabricating a package for a vertical power MOSFET
comprising: providing a semiconductor wafer including a plurality
of dice; attaching a back side of the wafer to a conductive
substrate; forming a nonconductive overcoat on a front side of the
dice; patterning the overcoat to expose source and gate pads on the
front side of the dice; separating the wafer into strips, each
strip containing a plurality of dice; assembling the strips
sandwich-like to form a stack, with an edge of each die in the
stack being exposed; depositing a first metal layer on one side of
the stack, the first metal layer wrapping around an edge of each
die to form an electrical connection between a location on the
front side of the die and a drain terminal of the MOSFET;
disassembling the stack into individual strips; and plating a
second metal layer over the first metal layer.
36. A semiconductor package comprising: a semiconductor die; a
substrate attached to a first side of the die; an overcoat
overlying a second side of the die, an opening in the overcoat
exposing a portion of the second side of the die; and an
electrically conductive wraparound layer adjacent to the exposed
portion of the second side of the die and extending along an edge
of the die to the substrate and forming at least a portion of an
electrical path between the second side of the die and a device
terminal on a first side of the die.
37. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the substrate is
electrically conductive.
38. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the electrically
conductive wraparound layer comprises a metal.
39. The semiconductor package of claim 38 wherein the electrically
conductive wraparound layer comprises first and second metal
sublayers, the second metal sublayer overlying and being thicker
than the first metal sublayer.
40. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the electrically
conductive wraparound layer comprises a conductive polymer.
41. The semiconductor package of claim 36 comprising a connection
pad on the second side of the die, the connection pad being
electrically insulated from the electrically conductive wraparound
layer.
42. The semiconductor package of claim 41 further comprising a
solder ball in electrical contact with the connection pad.
43. The semiconductor package of claim 41 further comprising a
conductive polymer ball in electrical contact with the connection
pad.
44. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the die comprises
a vertical power MOSFET.
45. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the die comprises
a diode.
46. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the die comprises
a bipolar transistor.
47. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the die comprises
a JFET.
48. The semiconductor package of claim 36 wherein the die comprises
a IC.
49. A package for a vertical power MOSFET comprising: a
semiconductor die, with source and gate pads being located on a
front side of the die and a drain terminal being located on a back
side of the die; a conductive substrate attached to the back side
of the die and in electrical contact with the drain terminal; and a
metal layer overlying the front side of the die and extending along
an edge of the die and making contact with the substrate.
50. The semiconductor package of claim 49 wherein the metal layer
comprises first and second metal sublayers, the second metal
sublayer overlying and being thicker than the first metal
sublayer.
51. The semiconductor package of claim 49 wherein the source and
gate pads comprise a layer of solderable metal.
52. The semiconductor package of claim 51 wherein the solderable
metal comprises a metal from the group consisting of gold, nickel,
copper and silver.
53. A semiconductor package comprising: a semiconductor die; a
first substrate attached to a front side of the die, an opening
being formed in the substrate at a location of a connection pad; a
second substrate attached to a back side of the die; and at least
one metal layer in contact with a location on the front side of the
die and extending along an edge of the die to said second substrate
and forming an electrical contact with a terminal on a back side of
the die.
54. The semiconductor package of claim 53 wherein the die is 1-2
mils thick.
55. A semiconductor package comprising: a die having a front side
and a back side and comprising a semiconductor device, the device
having at least one terminal at the front side and at least a
second terminal at the back side; at least one connection pad at
the front side of the die in electrical contact with the at least
one terminal; a substrate attached to the back side of the die, the
die and the substrate having edges that are substantially coplanar
and substantially perpendicular to the front and back sides of the
die; a wraparound metal layer extending from a location over the
front side of the die and along the edges of the die and the
substrate, the wraparound metal layer being in electrical contact
with the second terminal of the semiconductor device.
56. The semiconductor package of claim 55 wherein the substrate is
conductive.
57. The semiconductor package of claim 55 wherein the wraparound
metal layer is in contact with the edge and a portion of the a
backside of the substrate.
58. The semiconductor package of claim 55 wherein the wraparound
metal layer comprises at least two sublayers.
59. The semiconductor package of claim 55 wherein the substrate is
nonconductive, the substrate containing at least one via filled
with a conductive material.
60. The semiconductor package of claim 55 further comprising a
solder ball in electrical contact with the at least one connection
pad.
61. The semiconductor package of claim 55 further comprising a
conductive polymer ball in electrical contact with the at least one
connection pad.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
1. This application is related to application No. [Attorney Docket
No. 7766 US] and application No. [Attorney Docket No. 7791 US],
both of which were filed by the same applicants on the same date as
this application and both of which are incorporated herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
2. After the processing of a semiconductor wafer has been
completed, the resulting integrated circuit (IC) chips or dice must
be separated and packaged in such a way that they can be connected
to external circuitry. There are many known packaging techniques.
Most involve mounting the die on a leadframe, connecting the die
pads to the leadframe by wire-bonding or otherwise, and then
encapsulating the die and wire bonds in a plastic capsule, with the
leadframe left protruding from the capsule. The encapsulation is
often done by injection-molding. The leadframe is then trimmed to
remove the tie bars that hold it together, and the leads are bent
in such a way that the package can be mounted on a flat surface,
typically a printed circuit board (PCB).
3. This is generally an expensive, time-consuming process, and the
resulting semiconductor package is considerably larger than the die
itself, using up an undue amount of scarce "real estate" on the
PCB. In addition, wire bonds are fragile and introduce a
considerable resistance between the die pads and the leads of the
package.
4. The problems are particularly difficult when the device to be
packaged is a "vertical" device, having terminals on opposite faces
of the die. For example, a power MOSFET typically has its source
and gate terminals on the front side of the die and its drain
terminal on the back side of the die. Similarly, a vertical diode
has its anode terminal on one face of the die and its cathode
terminal on the opposite face of the die. Bipolar transistors,
junction field effect transistors (JFETs), and various types of
integrated circuits (ICs) can also be fabricated in a "vertical"
configuration.
5. Accordingly, there is a need for a process which is simpler and
less expensive than existing processes and which produces a package
that is essentially the same size as the die. There is a particular
need for such a process and package that can be used with
semiconductor dice having terminals on both their front and back
sides.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
6. These objectives are achieved in a semiconductor package
fabricated in accordance with this invention. The fabrication
process starts with a semiconductor wafer including a plurality of
dice and includes: forming an overcoat on a surface of the wafer;
attaching the wafer to a substrate; patterning the overcoat to
expose connection pads on a front side of the dice; forming an
electrically conductive wraparound layer on a side of a die, the
wraparound layer wrapping around an edge of the die to form at
least a portion of an electrical connection between a location on
the front side of the die and a terminal on a back side of the die;
and breaking the wafer into individual dice.
7. In one version of the process, the formation of a wraparound
layer includes severing the wafer along parallel lines between the
dice so as to yield a plurality of multiple-die strips; mounting
the strips adjacent to each other, sandwich-like, to form a stack;
depositing at least a first metal layer on an exposed side of the
stack, the first metal layer wrapping around the edge of each die
to form an electrical connection between the front side of the die
and an electrical terminal on the back side of the die;
disassembling the strips in the stack; separating the individual
dice in the strips; and plating a second metal layer over the first
metal layer. The first and second metal layers are, in effect,
sublayers of a single metal "layer".
8. The process may include forming a solderable metal layer on the
connection pads. The solderable metal layer can be formed, for
example, by removing a native oxide layer from the connection pad
(e.g., removing aluminum oxide from an aluminum layer) and
depositing a solderable metal such as gold, nickel or silver on the
exposed metal by sputtering or plating.
9. The process may also include forming solder or polymer bumps or
balls on the connection pads on the front side of the die, thereby
enabling the package to be mounted to a PCB using known flip-chip
techniques.
10. In some embodiments, perpendicular saw cuts are made between
the dice, the cuts extending partially through the substrate such
that the substrate remains intact at its back side. The
multiple-die strips are formed by breaking the wafer along a series
of parallel cuts. After the first metal layer has been deposited
and the stack has been disassembled, the strips are broken into
individual dice along the cuts perpendicular to those that were
broken to form the strips.
11. The substrate may be a sheet of a conductive material such as
copper or aluminum and may be attached to at least one terminal on
a back side of the die with a conductive cement. The conductive
substrate may serve as a heat sink as well as an electrical
contact. Alternatively, the substrate may be nonconductive, and
vias or holes may be formed in the substrate and filled with a
conductive material to facilitate electrical contact with the back
side of the die.
12. Typically the first metal layer is a relatively thin layer
deposited by sputtering or evaporation and the second metal layer
is a relatively thick layer formed by plating. In some embodiments,
it may be possible to make the first metal layer thick enough that
the second metal layer can be omitted.
13. In some cases, it may be desirable to make the semiconductor
wafer thinner, for example by grinding the back side of the wafer,
to reduce the resistance of the semiconductor device. To provide
support for the wafer during grinding, the front side of the wafer
is initially attached to a supporting substrate, which could be
made of a nonconductive material such as glass or a conductive
material such as copper. Holes are opened in the supporting
substrate to expose the connection pads on the front side of the
wafer.
14. A semiconductor package in accordance with this invention
comprises a semiconductor die; a supporting substrate attached to a
back side of the die; a nonconductive overcoat overlying a front
side of the die, an opening in the overcoat corresponding with a
connection pad on the front side of the die, and an electrically
conductive wraparound layer (which may include a conductive polymer
layer or one or more metal layers or sublayers) extending from the
front side of the die, around an edge of the die to the substrate,
and thereby establishing an electrical connection between a
location on the front side of the die and a terminal on the back
side of the die. A solder or polymer bump or ball can be formed on
the connection pad.
15. In one embodiment, the semiconductor package includes a
vertical power MOSFET, and the supporting substrate comprises a
sheet of copper. The overcoat is patterned so as to expose source
and gate pads on the front side of the die. The copper substrate is
attached with a conductive cement to a drain terminal on the back
side of the die, and the wraparound layer extends around an edge of
the die to establish an electrical connection between the front
side of the die and the copper substrate. The portion of the
wraparound layer on the front side of the die effectively forms a
front side drain pad. Solder balls are formed on the source, gate
and drain pads. The package can be inverted and mounted, flip-chip
style, on a PCB.
16. In another embodiment, the substrate is nonconductive, and vias
filled with a conductive material extend through the substrate to
allow electrical contact between the wraparound layer and the
terminal on the back side of the die.
17. Semiconductor packages according to this invention do not
require an epoxy capsule or bond wires; the one or more substrates
attached to the die serve to protect the die and act as heat sinks
for the die; the packages are very small (e.g., 50% the size of
molded packages) and thin; they provide a very low on-resistance
for the semiconductor device, particularly if the wafer is ground
thinner; they are economical to produce, since they require no
molds or lead frames; and they can be used for a wide variety of
semiconductor devices such as diodes, MOSFETs, JFETs, bipolar
transistors and various types of integrated circuit chips.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
18. This invention will be better understood by reference to the
following drawings (not drawn to scale), in which similar
components are similarly numbered.
19. FIG. 1 illustrates a top view of a conventional semiconductor
wafer including a plurality of dice.
20. FIG. 2A illustrates a cross-sectional view of a wafer attached
to a substrate in accordance with this invention.
21. FIG. 2B illustrates a single die of the wafer after the
overcoat has been deposited and patterned.
22. FIG. 2C illustrates the wafer after partial cuts have been made
along the scribe lines separating the dice.
23. FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of strips of dice
mounted together to form a stack in accordance with this
invention.
24. FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate top and cross-sectional views,
respectively, of one of the dice in the stack.
25. FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of three of the dice
in the stack, showing how the metal layers are deposited on the
pads and wrap around the edges of the dice to establish an
electrical connection with a terminal on the back side of the
die.
26. FIG. 6 illustrates a perspective view of the die after the
plating process has been completed.
27. FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate top and side views, respectively, of
the completed semiconductor package including solder balls for
making external connections.
28. FIG. 7C illustrates a side view of a package similar to the one
shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, except that the solder balls have been
omitted.
29. FIG. 8 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an alternative
embodiment wherein the supporting substrate is made of a
nonconductive material and vias filled with a conductive material
are formed in the substrate.
30. FIG. 9A shows an alternative embodiment wherein a supporting
substrate is attached to the front side of the wafer to support the
wafer as the back side of the wafer is being ground to make the
wafer thinner.
31. FIG. 9B shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor package
fabricated by the process shown in FIG. 9A.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
32. The processing of a semiconductor wafer yields a rectangular
array of dice. This is shown in FIG. 1, which illustrates a top
view of a wafer 100 and dice 102. The dice are separated by a
perpendicular network of scribe lines 104, where saw cuts are
typically made to separate the dice 102.
33. This invention will be described with respect to a package for
a vertical power MOSFET, which typically has source and gate
terminals on its front side and a drain terminal on its back side.
It should be understood, however, that the broad principles of this
invention can be used to fabricate a package for any type of
semiconductor die which has terminals both its front and back
sides, including diodes, bipolar transistors, junction field effect
transistors (JFETs), and various types of integrated circuits
(ICs). As used herein, the "front side" of a die refers to the side
of the die on which the electrical devices and/or a majority of the
connection pads are located; "back side" refers to the opposite
side of the die.
34. A semiconductor die normally has a top metal layer that
includes connection pads used for making interconnections with
external devices. Typically, this is an aluminum metal layer,
although copper layers are also being used. In most embodiments of
this invention, this metal layer needs to be modified so that it
will adhere to a solder metal such as tin/lead, for the reasons
described below. If there is a native oxide layer on the metal,
this native oxide layer must first be removed. Then a solderable
metal, such as gold, nickel or silver, is deposited on the exposed
metal. The removal of the oxide layer and deposition of a
solderable metal can be accomplished by means of a number of known
processes. For example, an aluminum layer can be sputter-etched to
remove the native aluminum oxide layer and then gold, silver or
nickel can be sputtered onto the aluminum. Alternatively, the die
can be dipped in a liquid etchant to strip away the oxide layer and
the solderable metal can then be deposited by electroless or
electrolytic plating. Electroless plating includes the use of a
"zincating" process to displace the oxide, followed by the plating
of nickel to displace the zincate.
35. After the layer of solderable metal has been deposited, the
next step in the process of this invention is illustrated in FIG.
2A, which shows a rectangular section of a semiconductor wafer 200
containing a number of dice 206. The back side of semiconductor
wafer 200 is attached to an electrically conductive supporting
substrate 202 with a layer of a conductive cement 204. In one
embodiment, substrate 202 is made of copper, but it could also be
made of any other conductive material capable of providing support
and acting as an electrical contact for wafer 200. Cement 204 could
be a metallic cement, a silver-filled conductive epoxy or another
conductive glue. Wafer 200 is typically silicon but it could also
be another semiconductor material such as silicon carbide or
gallium arsenide.
36. Typically, a metal layer (not shown) is formed on the backside
of wafer 200 before the cement 204 is applied to provide good
adhesion to the cement. For example, the metal layer can include a
500 .ANG. titanium sublayer overlain by a 3,000 .ANG. nickel
sublayer and a 1 .mu.m silver sublayer. The titanium, nickel and
silver sublayers can be deposited by evaporation or sputtering.
37. Wafer 200 includes dice 206 which in this embodiment contain
power MOSFETs, but as described above dice 206 could alternatively
contain bipolar transistors, diodes, JFETs, ICs or any type of
vertical or lateral current-flow device. The MOSFETs, bipolar
transistors, diodes or other devices are often formed in a
two-dimensional array in each of dice 206. As is typical, dice 206
are separated by a perpendicular network of scribe lines 207. Dice
206 have connection pads on their front sides which are exemplified
by source pads 208S and gate pads 208G shown in one of dice 206
designated die 206A. There are typically drain pads (not shown) on
the backsides of the dice 206. In this embodiment, pads 208S and
208G are located in a central region of die 206A. The portion of
the front side of die 206A that is not occupied by pads 208G and
208S is covered by a passivation layer 209. Typically, in the
processing of the wafer, openings are etched in the passivation
layer to expose the gate and source pads.
38. As shown in FIG. 2B, an overcoat 210 of polyimide, plastic or
glass is formed in the exposed surface of wafer 200 using spin-on,
deposition or spray techniques, and overcoat 210 is then patterned
using known photolithographic techniques, for example, so as to
leave the pads 208S and 208G and portions of passivation layer 209
exposed. Alternatively, the patterned overcoat can be formed by
other processes such as screen printing. In one embodiment,
screen-printed polyimide is used to form an overcoat that is 1 mil
thick.
39. FIG. 2B shows a view of die 206A after overcoat 210 has been
deposited and patterned, leaving pads 208S and 208G and portions of
passivation layer 209 exposed. For clarity, the thickness of
overcoat 210 is exaggerated in FIG. 2B. As shown, the exposed
portions of passivation layer 209 are adjacent to the edges of the
die 206A. Overcoat 210 can also be formed of a conductive material
such as aluminum or copper, but in that case a nonconductive
adhesive layer should be formed between the overcoat and the wafer
to ensure that the conductive overcoat does not become shorted to
the connection pads 208S and 208G.
40. Next, if desired, wafer 200 can be screen-printed or
laser-marked with markings such as the model number, etc. Then, as
shown in FIG. 2C, partial cuts 212X and 212Y are made in the
sandwich of wafer 200, overcoat 210 and substrate 202. Partial cuts
212X and 212Y do not extend all the way through the sandwich, but
they extend entirely through wafer 200 and overcoat 210 and far
enough into substrate 202 that substrate 202 can easily be broken
at the locations of partial cuts 212X and 212Y without damaging the
dice 206. As shown, partial cuts 212X and 212Y are perpendicular to
each other and are made at the locations of the scribe lines 207
between the individual dice 206. Partial cuts 212X and 212Y can be
made with a conventional dicing saw or, alternatively, by other
methods such as laser cutting or photolithographic patterning and
etching techniques.
41. Wafer 200 and substrate 202 are then broken into multichip
strips 214 along partial cuts 212X, each of which contains a row of
dice 206. To make sure that the dice 206 are not separated along
partial cuts 212Y at this stage, partial cuts 212X can be made
somewhat deeper than partial cuts 212Y. For example, in one
embodiment partial cuts 212X are 5 mils deeper than partial cuts
212Y. A ceramic breaking machine such as the Tokyo Weld TWA-100 AG
III can be used to break the wafer 200 into strips 214.
42. Alternatively, partial cuts 212Y are not made at this time, and
the strips 214 are separated into individual dice at a later stage
in the process. Another possibility is that partial cuts 212Y are
made before cuts 212X, and cuts 212X can extend all the way through
the substrate 202 such that there is no need to break the
substrate.
43. Strips 214 are assembled sandwich-like to form a stack 213, as
shown in FIG. 3, which is a cross-sectional view taken at the
location of one of the cuts 212Y. To form the stack 213, strips 214
can be held against one another in a magazine or other fixture
which contains a cavity shaped to hold the strips 214 in place with
one edge of the strips 214 exposed. While only three strips 214 are
shown in FIG. 3, as many as 50 or 100 or more strips 214 or can be
mounted in the stack. FIG. 3 also shows the overcoat 210
(exaggerated in thickness) which covers the surface of wafer 200
except where the pads 208S and 208G and the exposed portions of
passivation layer 209 are located. Because of the geometry and
locations of the pads, only the exposed portions of passivation
layer 209 are exposed when the strips 214 have been arranged
together in the stack 213. When the strips 214 are assembled into
the stack 213, pads 208S and 208G are in effect sealed off from the
external environment.
44. FIG. 4A shows a top view of die 206A in one of strips 214,
showing the locations of pads 208S and 208G. Also shown are the
exposed portions of passivation layer 209, which are located
adjacent an edge of die 206A. FIG. 4B shows a view taken at
cross-section 4B-4B in FIG. 4A, showing how overcoat 210 surrounds
the source pad 208S. It will be evident that overcoat 210 similarly
surrounds the gate pad 208G.
45. Strips 214 are then exposed to a deposition process by which a
first metal layer 215 is sputtered on the exposed portions of
passivation layer 209 and on the edges of strips 214, as shown in
the cross-sectional view of FIG. 5. Metal layer 215 begins on the
front side of the die 206A and extends around the edge of the die
206A to conductive substrate 202, thereby establishing an
electrical connection between the front side of die 206A and the
drain terminal of the MOSFET (shown symbolically) within dice 206.
In this embodiment metal layer 215 contacts both the edge and back
side of substrate 202. For example, layer 215 can be a layer of
nickel or copper 1000 .ANG. thick. Since, as shown in FIGS. 4A and
4B, pads 208S and 208G are totally enclosed by overcoat 210 and the
back side of the adjacent strip 214, the metal does not sputter
onto pads 208S and 208G. Alternatively, another process such as
evaporation can be used to form metal layer 215.
46. Metal layer 215 may extend onto the edges of overcoat 210 but
this does not create a problem because the strips 214 will later be
separated as described below.
47. The stack 213 is then turned over in the magazine to expose the
opposite edges of the dice 206, and the same process is performed
to create a similar layer 215 on the opposite sides of the dice
206.
48. Following the deposition of metal layer 215, stack 213 is
disassembled into individual strips 214, and the multichip strips
214 are broken into individual dice 206 along the cuts 212X. Again,
a Tokyo Weld TWA-100 AG III ceramic breaking machine can be used to
break the strips. Next, the individual dice 206 are placed in a
barrel-plating machine such as one manufactured by HBS or American
Plating, and an electroplating process is performed to form a
second metal layer 216 over the first metal layer 215.
Alternatively, other types of electroless plating machines or
processes can be used to form second metal layer 216. Metal layer
216 forms only on top of the metal layer 215 and does not adhere to
overcoat 210. For example, metal layer 216 can be a one mil thick
layer of a solderable metal such as tin/lead. Metal layer 216 thus
creates a good electrical connection between the front side of die
206A and the copper substrate 202 along opposite edges of the
die.
49. If the overcoat 210 is formed of a conductive material, as
described above a nonconductive adhesive layer is preferably
applied to separate the overcoat from the wafer. This nonconductive
layer creates a gap between the overcoat and the connection pads
and prevents the plated metal layer from creating a short between
the overcoat and the connection pads.
50. In some cases, it may be possible to omit the second metal
layer by depositing a relatively thick first metal layer by, for
example, sputtering or evaporation. In other embodiments, more than
two metal layers may be deposited to make the connection between
the front side of the die and the device terminal on the back side
of the die. When two or more layers are deposited, the layers can
be viewed, in effect, as sublayers in a single wraparound metal
"layer".
51. FIG. 6 shows die 206A after the plating process has been
completed, with the front side of die 206A being connected to
substrate 202 by means of the metal layers 215 and 216. The portion
of metal layer 216 on the front side of die 206A becomes in effect
a front side "drain pad." Since die 206A contains power MOSFETs,
substrate 202 would be in electrical contact with their drain
terminals, and thus the front side drain pads would be electrically
connected to the drain terminals of the power MOSFETs.
Alternatively, if die 206A contained diodes, metal layers 215 and
216 would connect the front side of die 206A to whichever terminals
(anodes or cathodes) were located on the back side of the die 206A.
Either pad 208G or 208S could be used to connect to the other
terminal of the diodes.
52. As an alternative to assembling die strips 214 into a stack 213
and forming layers 215 and 216 as described above, a wraparound
conductive polymer or metal layer functionally similar to layers
215 and 216 can be formed on die strips 214 using, for example, a
machine available from the Nitto company of Japan. As another
alternative, the electrically conductive wraparound layer
connecting the front side of the die and the device terminal on the
back side of the die can be formed after the wafer has been
separated into individual dice.
53. Using a conventional process, solder bumps or balls 219 can
then be formed on the pads 208S and 208G and the portions of the
metal layer 216 on the front side of die 206A (the "front side
drain pad"), producing the completed package 220 shown in the top
view of FIG. 7A and the side view of FIG. 7B. The solder balls 219
may be applied in a conventional manner by depositing and reflowing
solder paste or by other processes such as screen-printing or
solder jetting (using, for example, equipment available from Pac
Tech GmbH, Am Schlangenhorst 15-17, 14641 Nauen, Germany) or by
using the wafer level solder ball mounter available from Shibuya
Kogyo Co., Ltd., Mameda-Honmachi, Kanazawa 920-8681, Japan.
Conductive polymer bumps are another alternative, using for example
thermosetting polymers, B-state adhesives, or thermoplastic
polymers.
54. Package 220 is then mounted on a PCB or other flat surface by
the well-known "flip-chip" technique. Alternatively, the solder or
polymer bumps or balls 219 can be omitted to produce the package
230 shown in the side view of FIG. 7C.
55. Instead of attaching the wafer to an electrically conductive
substrate, a nonconductive substrate can be used to support the
wafer, and vias or holes can be formed in the substrate and filled
with a conductive material to make electrical contact with the back
side of the wafer. FIG. 8 shows a package 250 wherein a
nonconductive substrate 252 is attached to the back side of die
254. Vias 256 extend through substrate 252. Vias 256 are filled
with a conductive material 260 that is in electrical contact with a
layer 258 of conductive cement. Otherwise, the package is similar
to the embodiment described above, with an overcoat 262 deposited
on the front side of die 254 and metal layers 264 extending around
the edges of die 254 and substrate 252 to make electrical contact
with the conductive material 260. Substrate 252 could be made of
ceramic, aluminum oxide, glass, or plastic. Conductive material 260
could be a metal. Conductive material 260 may also extend through
the layer 258 so as to make a direct contact with a terminal on the
back side of die 254. Vias 256 could be formed, for example, by
drilling, and they could be filled by a plating process, using
machines manufactured by 3M or Nikko Denko.
56. Semiconductor wafers are normally on the order of 15 to 30 mils
thick. In order to reduce the resistance between the front and back
sides of the wafer, it may to desirable to make the wafer thinner.
This can be accomplished by processing the back side of the wafer,
e.g., by grinding. To provide proper support for the wafer during
the grinding process, the front side of the wafer is bonded to a
supporting substrate. After the grinding has been completed, the
back side of the wafer is attached to a substrate, in the manner in
which wafer 200 is attached to a conductive substrate 202, as shown
in FIG. 2A, or a nonconductive substrate 252, as shown in FIG. 8.
Thus a sandwich is created, including the thinned wafer interposed
between the substrates attached to its front and back sides,
respectively. Thereafter, the process described above is applied to
the sandwich structure.
57. FIG. 9A shows a section of a thinned wafer 300 sandwiched
between a front side substrate 302 and a back side substrate 304.
Openings 306 have been formed in the front side substrate 302 to
provide access to connection pads (not shown) and a portion of the
passivation layer on the front side of wafer 300. Front side
substrate 302 could be made of glass or copper and is attached to
wafer 300 with a layer 301 of a nonconductive cement such as
nonconductive epoxy, for example, to prevent shorting between the
connection pads. Openings 306 could be formed by etching or by a
mechanical means such as stamping or drilling, and openings 306 can
be performed in front side substrate 302 before substrate 302 is
attached to wafer 300. The back side of wafer 300 is ground with,
for example, a grinding machine available from Strausbaugh after
wafer 300 is attached to front side substrate 302 but before wafer
300 is attached to back side substrate 304. Wafer 300 may be ground
to a thickness of 1-2 mils, for example. As an alternative to
grinding, wafer 300 can be thinned by lapping or etching. The use
of front side substrate 302 may eliminate the need for an overcoat
on the front side of wafer 300, or an overcoat may be applied to
the front side of wafer 300 before front side substrate 302 is
attached.
58. The sandwich structure shown in FIG. 9A is processed as
described above in, for example, FIGS. 2C, 3, and 5, to produce a
semiconductor package having a wraparound metal layer which
establishes an electrical connection between the front side of the
die and a device terminal on their back side of the die. A
cross-sectional view of the resulting package at section 9B-9B is
shown in FIG. 9B, with one or more metal layers 310 wrapping around
an edge of die 300A to form an electrical connection between the
front side of die 300A and a terminal on the back side of die
300A.
59. While particular embodiments of this invention have been
described, these embodiments are illustrative and not limiting. It
will be understood by those skilled in the art that many
alternative embodiments are possible within the broad scope of this
invention.
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