Assembly Using X-Wire™ Insulated Bonding Wire Technology
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Assembly Using X-Wire™ Insulated Bonding Wire Technology Robert Lyn, William (Bud) Crockett, Microbonds, Inc. Markham, ON, Canada Presented at SEMICON Singapore 2007 Assembly Using X-Wire™ Insulated Bounding Wire Technology Page 1 ABSTRACT and systems architects have had to make to accommodate the shortcomings in the As the semiconductor industry continues to move interconnection (packaging) technology available. towards higher pin count, finer pitch, multi-row and multi- stack devices, wire bonding becomes an CHIP LEVEL INTERCONNECTION increasing challenge for today’s advanced packaging processes. Insulated bonding wire An important first step in electronics packaging technology, known as X-Wire™, has been identified interconnections are the chip-level, (also called on the 2006 ITRS Roadmap for Semiconductors first-level) interconnects. This interconnect will [1], as a viable, cost-effective solution to enable dictate to a high degree how much performance complex package designs, enhance package can be achieved from a chip. Performance is performance, and improve the yield of high-density critical; however, an IC product manager cannot packaging. consider performance in isolation to other economic factors. Important considerations in a full In order to successfully implement insulated wire benefit/cost tradeoff analysis can be grouped into bonding, low cost integration into the existing the following categories: (1) Cost, (2) Performance, packaging assembly infrastructure is of utmost (3) Size/Density, and (4) Time-to-Market. importance. In particular, it is a requirement that Packaging technologies are typically evaluated on the insulated bonding wires demonstrate this basis. wirebonding and package assembly performance which meets industry standard wire bond package Although many types of first-level interconnection test specifications when used on existing technologies exist to connect chip-to-chip, and wirebonding and packaging assembly platforms. chip-to-substrate, two primary methods continue to This paper will discuss various methods, dominate the industry: (1) Wire bonding & (2) Flip techniques and processes developed to date that Chip (a form of Wafer Level Packaging), with allow insulated wire packages to be assembled with wirebonding holding greater than 90 percent of the high yield and reliability using current production market. Over time, niche technologies such TAB equipment. Proper capillary selection and wire (tape-automated-bonding) and more recently, bonder setup, as well as correct use of bond through- silicon-via (TSV), have emerged to provide parameters, loop parameters, plasma parameters alternate solutions to specific interconnection and other advanced wirebond and packaging challenges. techniques will be highlighted. INSULATED WIRE BONDING BACKGROUND – SYSTEM PACKAGING SELECTION The semiconductor industry has been seeking a viable insulated wire bonding solution for almost as IC packaging is often described as the linkage long as wirebonding technology has been available between the silicon and the system. In layman’s [2,3]. The benefits of insulated wire bonding have terms, electronics packaging can be described as been well known and clear for many years: the process of connecting chips together to create an electronic system. The ultimate technical goal is With respect to a full benefit/cost tradeoff analysis, to deliver the highest performance chip function to insulated bonding wire provides: the end-user at the lowest cost; however, limitations in packaging and chip manufacturing 1) Cost: technology create a ‘drag’ in the system which a. The ability to use the lowest cost reduce the final performance to the user. These manufacturing infrastructure, which limitations are the compromises that chip designers is wirebonding. www.NordsonMARCH.com Assembly Using X-Wire™ Insulated Bounding Wire Technology Page 2 2) Performance: wirebonding at the forefront of the lowest a. The ability to allow more cost/highest performance I/O battleground. interconnections per unit area at the chip level, enabling low cost ‘die WAFER LEVEL PACKAGING & FLIP CHIP shrink’ chips and reducing pad- TECHNOLOGY limitations. b. The ability to connect chips directly Wafer Level Packaging Technology is an emerging together for highest bandwidth interconnection technology for the IC packaging connection, eliminating layers of industry, generally referring to a technique in which chip, substrate and board level bumps applied directly to a wafer, after which the wiring and allowing flexible routing. wafer is diced into individual ICs. Wafer level c. The ability to bring signal and packaging is used in applications requiring small ground wires very close together to form factor, high density and/or low-inductance. minimize inductance. Flip chip can be cost/benefit effective for wiring out 3) Size: very high I/O chips (> 1000) and high frequency a. The ability to place chips tightly applications with similarly low inductance. In together, known as ‘brick-walling’, relation to wirebonding, the commodity not requiring a wire-bond fan-out or infrastructure for wafer level packaging and flip chip keep-out area. remains in the early stages, as indicated by its b. The ability to connect stack dies relatively higher cost; particularly at low-to-medium directly and flexibility in a wide volumes. variety of configurations. 4) Time-to Market: Flip chip does offer some technical advantages a. The ability to use existing chips over bare wire bonding for very high I/O, high immediately without additional chip speed devices, but at high cost compared to the or wafer processing. existing wire-bonding infrastructure currently in b. The flexibility to be applied on a wide place. Flip chip for high I/O single-chip packages range of applications also competes with advances in system-on-a-chip (SOC) technology, resulting in an overall chip I/O Because of its flexibility and cost effectiveness and eduction in very high pincount devices. Wire- because it leverages a significant amount of proven bonding offers the most flexible and cost-effective human capital, wire bonding is the dominant interconnection method, particularly where it technology in the semiconductor packaging embraces advanced materials and will be further industry, used in over 90 percent of all IC extended by advances in system-on-a-chip. packages. Prior to insulated wire bonding, previous limitations to wirebonding have been that the PACKAGING COST – THE FINAL ARBITER interconnections have been confined to the perimeter of the chip, and as chip I/Os have In the semiconductor packaging industry, where increased this has created a need to develop economic improvement is measured in fractions of technologies which have area array capability, i.e., pennies, cost ultimately rules. Costs relative to chip I/Os which are not restricted to the perimeter. packaging technology selection can be considered A secondary concern with wirebonding had been in two main categories: (1) Infrastructure adoption inductance of long and parallel wires; which can be costs, and (2) Per-Unit scaling costs. alleviated using crossed and closely packed insulated wires. Copper wirebonding, both insulated Incremental Infrastructure Adoption Costs: and non-insulated is also gaining prominence for With respect to adoption cost, it is clear that performance and cost advantages, helping to keep wirebonding is the preferred platform, because of www.NordsonMARCH.com Assembly Using X-Wire™ Insulated Bounding Wire Technology Page 3 the extensive installed base of equipment, The Yole methodology confirms bare wirebonding materials and human capital as well as interconnect as currently the lowest cost IC interconnect flexibility. It cannot be overstated that a key technology, relative to flip chip, while the real costs decision point for the product manager, CTO and for thru-silicon-via are yet to be determined. assembly house is to increase I/O capability at the lowest possible incremental cost. An example Focusing on the flip chip and wirebond scaling cost ranking of incremental adoption costs of selected graphs, from the above chart, it can be appreciated packaging technologies is typically considered to that the extension of wirebond technology with be: insulated wire achieves additional interconnect 1) Wirebonding (including insulated wire) capability increase at a fraction of the incremental 2) Wafer Level Packaging & Flip Chip adoption cost, once the traditional capability 3) Tape Automated Bonding (TAB) limitations of 2D & 3D parallelism are removed. 4) Thru-Silicon-Via (TSV) Hence, the justification for many industry attempts developing a commercially viable insulated bonding Per-Unit Scaling Costs: wire technology is clearly understood. A recently completed study by Yole [5], provides a type of methodology for comparing per-unit, scaling Therefore, considering the cost and benefit costs of the various packaging technologies. The together, overall packaging technology selection comprehensive 250 page report, on the subject of criteria may be summarized in Table 1: 3D packaging alternatives, examines technologies such as bare (i.e. not insulated) wirebonding, flip Wire Bond Flip Chip TSV chip and package-on-package (POP), in + Insulated comparison to a new approach called through Med- Cost Very Low Very High silicon via (TSV). The cost per interconnect on a High wafer basis, for first- level interconnect alternatives, Early is plotted on a chart. For reference purposes, a Infrastructure Mature None 9x9mm die is