Harris Corporation

Roger H Higman

Douglas E Heckaman

Jeffrey A Frisco

Gilbert Reeves Perkins

Edward J Bajgrowicz

A packaging structure mounts integrated circuit chips in a nested, cavity-up configuration, so as to permit access to the modules for reworkability, but without the use of a separate printed circuit board for support and interconnect among the modules. Each monolithic integrated circuit module comprises a cavity-up leadless chip carrier which is affixed to its own dedicated thermally and electrically conductive mounting base, that effectively plugs into an underlying ground plane, heat sink support. The mounting base may comprise of a thin conductive plate having a cylindrical stem, through which the mounting base is retained within an aperture in the underlying support. The underlying support has a plurality of cylindrical stem engaging apertures distributed in a matrix configuration, so that the insertion of a plurality of chip carrier mounting bases into the apertures of the matrix causes the mounting bases to be aligned edgewise in a tight edge-to-edge array. Distributed along edge portions of a mounting base contact regions to which conductive traces from topside wirebond links on the chip extend. Interconnection between chip carriers may be accomplished by elastomeric connectors bridging the contact regions of the mutually aligned edges of the mounting bases. Circuit-to-circuit interconnections are accomplished through IC chip wiring layers or an additional wiring layer in the chip carrier.

Method of making a high speed, high density semiconductor memory package

High speed, high density semiconductor memory package with chip level

A fixture for testing of an MMIC-containing package includes an alignment plate, a pogo-pin assembly, a waffleline support baseplate, and a pressure engagement assembly. The alignment plate contains a pattern of apertures that matches that of the pins of the MMIC-containing package and defines, with those pins, transmission lines having an impedance that effectively matches that of the internal interconnect to the MMICs within the package. The alignment plate is mounted atop a pogo-pin assembly, pogo-pins of which are aligned with signal conductors of the package, and which form transmission lines having an impedance effectively matching the impedance of the transmission lines through the alignment plate. The pogo-pin assembly engages a waffleline structure in a baseplate. The baseplate includes coaxial connectors that are coupled to channels of the waffleline and joined to the pogo-pins. A pressure engagement assembly is mounted upon the baseplate adjacent to the pogo-pin assembly for urging a MMIC-containing package into pressure contact with the alignment plate. As the package is brought into contact with the alignment plate, its signal conductors are aligned with and pass through the apertures through the plate, and press against the pogo-pins.

Test fixture for multi-GHZ microwave integrated circuits

A chip carrier assembly and support arrangement provides a thermally and conductively secure chip interface, and enables rapid insertion and removal of the carrier so that replacement or repair of MMIC components may be facilitated. The chip carrier, which contains one or more chip cavities, is cylindrically configured and made of a material that has a coefficient of thermal expansion that is relatively low compared to that of its surrounding housing, so that a substantially uniform radial compressive force, resulting from the difference in coefficients of thermal expansion of the housing and the carrier, acts uniformly between the cylindrical sidewall of the cylindrical slot in the housing and the cylindrical sidewall of the carrier, thereby securing the chip carrier to the housing and providing thermal and electrical continuity between the carrier and its support housing. With thermal control and electrical grounding accomplished at its cylindrical perimeter, the thickness of the chip carrier becomes non-critical and can be tailored for heat spreading and ease of fabrication.

Replaceable MMIC chip carrier captured by differential thermal expansion

A miniaturized transmission link architecture for intercoupling high frequency miniaturized integrated circuit components comprises a thin conductive plate in one surface of which a matrix or grid work of rectilinear grooves or channels are formed, creating 'waffle-iron'-like pattern in one surface of the conductive plate. The spacing between channels corresponds to the width of a channel which, in turn, may be sized to substantially match the outer diameter of insulation jacketed wire that is placed in the channels. The depth of a channel or groove is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the wire to accommodate wire crossovers at intersections of the channels. The top surface of the 'waffle-plate' is provided with a conductive foil to complete the shielding for the wires. Because the waffle structure has the same periodicity along either of the orthogonal directions of the channels, the characteristic impedance of the transmission link is readily defined by the size of the lands or mesas that are bounded by the channels and the widths of the channels themselves.

Waffleline - configured transmission link

Waffleline-configured microwave transmission link

A miniaturized microwave transmission link comprises short links of dielectric coated fine wire overlying a ground plane between signal coupling/launching pins of MICs. A dielectric cap is provided at each wire-pin termination and a layer of conductive foil is pressed onto the overall structure to form a conformal tunnel/channel microwave transmission line configuration. The resulting tunneline, and/or channeline transmission line structure may connect MICs in a compact housing or provide access from external terminals to leads in a IC chip.

Growing community of inventors

Palm Bay, FL, United States of America

Roger H Higman