International Business Machines Corporation

Georgia Tech Research Corporation

Avx Corporation

Jacket Micro Devices, Inc.

George E White

Madhavan Swaminathan

Sidharth Dalmia

Eric D Perfecto

Venkatesh V Sundaram

Chandrika Prasad

Mukta S Farooq

Suryanarayana Kaja

Keshav B Prasad

Gordon J Robbins

Michael F McAllister

James A McDonald

Sampath Purushothaman

Laertis Economikos

Kwong Hon Wong

Thomas Anthony Wassick

Srinivasa N Reddy

Vivek M Sura

William H Price

Semyon Lapushin

Vinu Govind

Lawrence Alan Carastro

Amit Bavisi

Winston Czakon

Venkatesh Sundraram

Madhavan Swanimathan

Organic laminate stack ups are disclosed for a variety of applications, including high frequency RF applications. One or more inner core layers may be disposed between outer layers along with bondply or prepreg layers as needed. Discrete devices, including surface mount components and flip chips, may be embedded within the organic laminate stack up structures. The embedding of the discrete devices, which may be active or passive devices, may be in the form of a layer of bondply or prepreg encapsulating the discrete devices. In addition or in the alternative, cavities may be formed in at least the outer layers for housing discrete devices, which include surface mount components, flip chips, and wire bonded integrated circuits. A variety of caps may be utilized to seal the cavities. Further, shielding may be provided for the organic laminate stack up structure, including through a wall of vias or a plated trench cut along at least one side of the stack up structure. Each stack up structure may be packaged in a variety of ways, including as a surface mount component, ball grid array, or land grid array.

Heterogeneous organic laminate stack ups for high frequency applications

The present invention provides all organic fully-packaged miniature bandpass filters, baluns, diplexers, multiplexers, couplers and a combination of the above manufactured using liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) and other multilayer polymer based substrates. These devices are manufactured using one or more LCP layers having integrated passive components formed thereon to provide the density and performance necessary for multi-band wireless devices. In the designs involving multiple LCP layers, the LCP layers are separated by prepeg layers. In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, coplanar waveguide, hybrid stripline/coplanar waveguide and/or microstrip topologies are utilized to form the integrated passive components, and the devices can be mass produced on large area panels at least 18 inches by 12 inches with line widths smaller than 10 um.

Liquid crystalline polymer and multilayer polymer-based passive signal processing components for RF/wireless multi-band applications

Example embodiments of the invention may provide for a multi-package system. The multi-package system may include a first package having a plurality of first organic dielectric layers, where the first package includes at least one first conductive layer positioned between two of the plurality of first organic dielectric layers, and where the at least one first conductive layer is circuitized to form at least one first passive device. The multi-package system may also include a second package having a plurality of second organic dielectric layers, where the second package includes at least one second conductive layer positioned between two of the plurality of second organic dielectric layers, and where the at least one second conductive layer is circuitized to form at least one second passive device. An electrical connector may be provided between a bottom surface of the first package and a top surface of the second package to electrically connect the first package and the second package.

Integration using package stacking with multi-layer organic substrates

The present invention includes methods for making liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) interconnect structures using a high temperature and low temperature single sided LCP, where both the high and low temperature LCP are provided with a z-axis connection. The single sided conductive layer is a bus layer to form z-axis conductive stud within the high and low temperature LCP. High and low temperature LCP layers are etched or built up to form circuit patterns and subsequently bonded together to form final multilayer circuit pattern where the low temperature LCP melts to form both dielectric to dielectric bond to high temperature LCP circuit layer, and dielectric to conductive bond.

Method for fabricating three-dimensional all organic interconnect structures

Embodiments of the invention may provide for a variety of antennae structures, including the following: a) antennae structures printed directly on the sides of the radio frequency (RF) module or integrated passive device (IPD), b) printed antennae structures fabricated on preformed dielectric lids or overmolds, c) antennae structures fabricated as part of the dielectric wiring that constitutes the wireless module, d) antennae structures that are printed directly on the top of the finished RF module, and e) antennae structures printed directly on the dielectric layers adjacent to thin film wiring and embedded passive elements such as filters, diplexers and couplers.

Systems and methods for integrated antennae structures in multilayer organic-based printed circuit devices

The present invention allows for the use of chip-package co-design of RF transceivers and their components by using discrete active devices in conjunction with passive components. Two particular components are described, including voltage controlled oscillators (VCOs) and low noise amplifiers (LNAs). The high quality passive components for use in the VCOs and LNAs may be obtained by the use of embedded passives in organic substrates. Further, the embedded passives may have multi-band characteristics, thereby allowing multi-band VCOs and LNAs to be implemented with fewer components. In situations where size is a concern, the active devices and passive components utilized in an RF transceiver may be implemented in a low form factor module of less than 1.1 mm thick according to an embodiment of the invention.

Multi-band RF transceiver with passive reuse in organic substrates

Embodiments of the present invention may provide for high-performing inductor structures utilizing multi-layer organic stackups. In particular, these high-performing inductor structures may be formed of one or more stitched metal layer building blocks, which are each formed of at least two inductor sections that are vertically or horizontally aligned, and then stitched or connected together. This stitching process significantly reduces the DC/RF losses while reducing the inductance value by a substantially lower factor, thereby significant increasing the Q-factor of the resulting inductor structure. Each stitched metal layer building block may be formed on an organic dielectric layer (e.g., liquid crystalline polymer (LCP)) having a first conductive layer on a first surface and perhaps a second conductive layer on a second surface opposite the first surface. The at least two inductor sections described above may be formed by patterning or circuitizing the first conductive layer and/or the second conductive layer. Additional stitched metal layer building blocks may be stacked with at least one organic laminate layer (e.g., LCP) disposed between each pair of stitched metal layer building blocks. Plated vias may be utilized to connect one stitched metal layer building block with another stitched metal layer building block to form a resulting high-performing inductor structure.

Methods and apparatuses for high-performing multi-layer inductors

The present invention includes methods for making liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) interconnect structures using a high temperature and low temperature single sided liquid crystalline polymer LCP where both the high and low temperature LCP are drilled to form a z-axis connection. The single sided conductive layer is a bus layer to form z axis conductive stud within the high and low temperature LCP, followed by a metallic capping layer of the stud that serves as the bonding metal between the conductive interconnects to form the z-axis connection. High and low temperature LCP layers are etched or built up to form circuit patterns and subsequently bonded together to form final multilayer circuit pattern where the low temperature LCP melts to form both dielectric to dielectric bond to high temperature LCP circuit layer, and dielectric to conductive bond, whereas metal to metal bonding occurs with high temperature metal capping layer bonding to conductive metal layer.

Methods for fabricating three-dimensional all organic interconnect structures

The present invention includes an organic device that can be integrated in a multilayer board made of organic material. The passive devices can be integrally fabricated on a circuit board in either surface mount device (SMD) or ball grid array (BGA) form. Alternatively, the passive device can be constructed in a stand alone SMD or BGA/chip scale package (CSP) form to make it mountable on a multilayer board, ceramic carrier or silicon platform in the form of an integrated passive device. The passive device includes side shielding on two sides in the SMD form and four sides in the BGA/CSP form. The side shielding can be external or in-built.

Integrated passive devices fabricated utilizing multi-layer, organic laminates

The present invention provides for low cost discrete inductor devices in an all organic platform. The inductor devices can utilize virtually any organic material that provides the desired properties, such as liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) or polyphenyl ether (PPE), in a multilayer structure, wherein the organic materials have low moisture uptake and good temperature stability. Each layer may be metalized and selectively interconnected by vias formed in respective layers so as to form winding or coiled inductors. The inductor devices may advantageously include external shielding formed by metalizing the side walls and top surface of the inductor devices on in-built shielding achieved by the utilization of the hybrid co-planar waveguide topologies. The inductor devices can be configured for either ball grid array (BGA)/chip scale package (CSP) or surface mount device (SMD) mounting to circuit boards.

Stand-alone organic-based passive devices

A thin film wiring scheme on a substrate. The thin film wiring scheme includes a plurality of chip connection pads at each of a first and second chip site on the substrate, a plurality of directional wiring lines interspersed between the chip connection pads at each of the first and second chip sites, at least one of the directional wiring lines being orthogonal to at least one of the other directional wiring lines at each of the first and second chip sites, and a plurality of chip site interconnection lines connecting directional wiring lines at the first chip site with the directional wiring lines at the second chip site.

Thin film wiring scheme utilizing inter-chip site surface wiring

A device includes a ceramic substrate. A ceramic via is defined within the ceramic substrate at an actual location which differs from a designed desired location for the ceramic via. A minimal capture pad electrically communicates the actual location with the designed desired location. The minimal capture pad contains a ceramic via contact portion, a thin film stud contact portion, and a connecting portion; and each of the three is configured to be as small as permitted to limit the capacitances produced by the capture pad.

Minimal capture pads applied to ceramic vias in ceramic substrates

The present invention relates generally to a new structure and method for capped copper electrical interconnects. More particularly, the invention encompasses a novel structure in which one or more of the copper electrical interconnects within a semiconductor substrate are capped to obtain a robust electrical interconnect structure. A method for obtaining such capped copper electrical interconnect structure is also disclosed. These capped interconnects can be a single layer or multi-layer structures. Similarly, the interconnect structure that is being capped can itself be composed of single or multi-layered material.

Growing community of inventors

Marietta, GA, United States of America

George E White