Motorola Corporation

Victor J Adams

Frank E Polka

Paul T Bennett

Henry G Hughes

Ronald J Gutteridge

David James Dougherty

Horst A Gempe

John W Hart, Jr

Marilyn J Stuckey

Carl E Derrington

Brooks L Scofield, Jr

James R Black

Sidney H Griest

Brooks L Schofield, Jr

An integrated circuit sensor assembly (10) is mounted to a solid surface (11) of a metal leadframe (12) by placing RTV adhesive (30-36) at the four corners of the substrate (14). The RTV material cover less than the entire surface area between the leadframe surface and the substrate. The RTV provides coplanar support for the sensor assembly while maintaining a gap between a significant portion of the surface area between the substrate and the leadframe surface. The metal leadframe undergoes compression and expansion stresses from temperature cycling during the manufacturing process. The gap decouples the sensor assembly from leadframe and provides stress isolation. Moreover, the flexibility and resiliency of the four corner RTV dots absorb stress induced by the leadframe.

Sensor assembly mounted to a leadframe with adhesive deposits at

A method of forming a package assembly (10) including a package (12) that encapsulates an electronic die. A leadframe (30) has edge rails (32), and the die is disposed on the leadframe. The package is formed around the die to encapsulate it, and the leadframe is trimmed to provide a plurality of leads (14) protruding from a first side of the package. This trimming also provides a support (16) connected to a second side of the package. The support is bent to be substantially orthogonal to the common plane containing the leads. A mounting tip (26) on the support is thus disposed outside of the common plane. This support improves the rigidity and natural bending frequency of the package assembly.

Method of forming a package assembly

A semiconductor sensor (10) is built into a cable connector to provide rapid and reliable attachment of the semiconductor sensor (10) into a monitoring or control system. The sensor (10) is mounted in a package (11) having cable connector leads (12, 13, 14) extending through the package (11). The semiconductor sensor (10) is electrically attached to the cable connector leads (12, 13, 14). A housing (20,30) surrounds the package (11) and provides a protective shroud for the cable connector leads (12, 13, 14).

Pressure sensor built into a cable connector

A semiconductor wafer level package used to encapsulate a device fabricated on a semiconductor substrate wafer before dicing of the wafer into individual chips. A cap wafer is bonded to the semiconductor substrate wafer using a pre-patterned frit glass as a bonding agent such that the device is hermetically sealed inside a cavity. A hole in the cap wafer allows electrical connections to be made to the device through electrodes which pass through the frit glass seal.

Semiconductor wafer level package

A method of fabricating a surface micromachined structure is comprised of the steps of providing a semiconductor substrate having a dynamic element partially supported above the semiconductor substrate by a release layer and having a metal contact layer disposed on the dynamic element, forming a protection layer over the metal contact layer, and removing the release layer and the protection layer with an etchant that etches the protection layer at a slower rate than the release layer.

Method of fabricating surface micromachined structures

A method for forming a solid state semiconductor pressure sensor in which the pressure sensor element is protected from the ambient whose pressure is being measured by a combination of a pressure transfer medium and a thin covering membrane. The method includes applying the thin covering membrane so as to substantially avoid entrapment of air or formation of voids in the pressure transfer medium which would degrade the performance of the sensor. The pressure transfer medium is a gel-like material such as a silastic. The membrane is chosen to be substantially impermeable to the ambients being measured and sufficiently flexible to avoid attenuation of the input pressure signal. The membrane is cast in place by applying a thin liquid coating or a heat deformable film over the pressure transfer medium and then coverting it into a thin solid membrane stuck to the pressure transfer medium and the pressure sensor body.

Method for forming a cast membrane protected pressure sensor

A solid state semiconductor pressure sensor is described in which the pressure sensor element is protected from the ambient whose pressure is being measured by a combination of a pressure transfer medium and a thin covering membrane. A method is described for applying the thin covering membrane so as to substantially avoid entrapment of air or formation of voids in the pressure transfer medium which would degrade the performance of the sensor. The pressure transfer medium is a gel-like material such as a silicone rubber. The membrane is chosen to be substantially impermeable to the ambients being measured and sufficiently flexible to avoid attenuation of the input pressure signal. The membrane is cast in place by applying a thin liquid coating or a heat deformable film over the pressure transfer medium and then converting it into a thin solid membrane stuck to the pressure transfer medium and the pressure sensor body.

Cast membrane protected pressure sensor

A solid state semiconductor pressure sensor is described in which the pressure sensor element is protected from the ambient whose pressure is being measured by a combination of a pressure transfer medium and a thin covering membrane. A method is described for applying the thin covering membrane so as to substantially avoid entrapment of air or formation of voids in the pressure transfer medium which would degrade the performance of the sensor. The pressure transfer medium is a gel-like material such as a silastic. The membrane is chosen to be substantially impermeable to the ambients being measured and sufficiently flexible to be rolled across the surface of the assembly during fabrication and to avoid attenuation of the input pressure signal. Fluorosilicone is an example of a suitable membrane material.

Membrane protected pressure sensor

An axially arranged solid state semiconductor pressure sensor assembly is provided in which the semiconductor pressure sensing die is mounted on an internal sub-assembly which is functionally testable and which mates with a variety of different external sleeves individually adapted to attach in different ways to the vessel or system containing the pressure intended to measured. The sub-assembly comprises a cylindrical dielectric body having a platform parallel to the axis of the cylinder. The body contains electrical leads aligned parallel to the platform and extending from the region adjacent to the platform where wire bonds may be made directly to the sensor chip, to the opposite end of the body. A hole and channel arrangement is provided through the dielectric body to the central portion of the platform for communicating the reference pressure to the rear face of the semiconductor die. The sub-assembly is sealed in a metal, plastic or ceramic sleeve which may have a variety of threaded, tapered or bayonet-type mechanisms for attaching to the system containing the pressure to be measured. A boot assembly containing the electrical connections and a means for delivering the reference pressure slips conveniently into or over the opposite end of the sleeve for making connections to the device.

Axial pressure sensor

A one piece housing suitable for housing semiconductor chips is molded from a polymer material. Electrical leads pass through a molded one piece housing to provide electrical contact between the semiconductor die and external circuitry. A hole can be provided in the bottom of the package if the package is to be used as a unibody pressure transducer package.

Unibody pressure transducer package

A process for bonding the surfaces of two polymeric materials and an improved optocoupler manufactured therewith is provided. Optocouplers are typically manufactured with the emitter and detector devices enclosed within a coupling material such as silicone gel for providing an electrical dielectric while being transparent to light. The coupling material is enclosed within an encapsulating material that is both reflective to light, protective against mechanical forces, and opaque to ambient light. The disclosed process bonds the coupling material to the encapsulating material to eliminate creepage paths and prevent the resultant voltage breakdown between electrodes along the interface of the two materials. The coupling material is treated so that active functional groups are formed on the surface, leaving it in an activated state. The surface of the second material is placed over the treated surface of the first material so that a chemical bond is formed.

Method of making an octocoupler

A method for dispensing viscous materials is described in which a quill having a fluted insert comprise end portions having a small radius of curvature. The viscous material is extruded from the collet, brought into contact with the article on which the material is to be deposited, and then removed leaving a hollow figure of material having approximately the same shape as the cross-section of the quill.

Method of forming a ring of viscous material against a substrate

An improved collet and method for dispensing viscous materials is described in which a quill having a fluted insert comprise end portions having a small radius of curvature. The viscous material is extruded from the collet, brought into contact with the article on which the material is to be deposited, and then removed leaving a hollow figure of material having approximately the same shape as the cross-section of the quill.

Growing community of inventors

Tempe, AZ, United States of America

Victor J Adams