Freescale Semiconductor,inc.

Other

Motorola Corporation

William G McDonald

Stephen Ryan Hooper

James MacDonald

David Joseph Monk

James J Wang

Dwight Lee Daniels

Arvind S Salian

Jian Wen

Chunlin C Xia

Philip H Bowles

Hemant D Desai

Darrel R Frear

John W Hart, Jr

Slobodan Petrovic

Alexander M Arayata

Michael E Chapman

Daniel John Wallace, Jr

James E Hannibal, Jr

An overmolded pressure sensor package is provided. The pressure sensor die (Pcell) is capped so that the Pcell has enhanced rigidity to withstand stress effects produced by the molding encapsulant. The Pcell cap includes a hole located away from the Pcell diaphragm, so that external gas pressure can be experienced by the Pcell, while at the same time directing moisture away from the diaphragm. Gel does not need to be used, and instead a soft film can be deposited on the Pcell to protect the Pcell diaphragm from excess moisture, if needed. The Pcell cap can take the form of, for example, a dummy silicon wafer or a functional ASIC.

Capacitive pressure sensor in an overmolded package

A method of forming a dual port pressure sensor includes forming a first opening and a second opening in a flag of a lead frame. An encapsulant is molded to hold the lead frame in which the encapsulant is over a top of the flag and a bottom of the flag is uncovered by the encapsulant. A first opening in the encapsulant is aligned with and larger than the first opening in the flag and a second opening in the encapsulant aligned with the second opening in the flag. A pressure sensor transducer is attached to the bottom of the flag to cover the first opening in the flag, wherein the pressure sensor transducer provides an electrically detectable correlation to a pressure differential based on a first pressure received on its top side and a second pressure received on its bottom side. An integrated circuit is attached to the bottom of the flag. The integrated circuit is electrically coupled to the pressure sensor. A lid is attached to the encapsulant to form an enclosure around the bottom of the flag. The pressure sensor transducer receives the first pressure through the first opening in the encapsulant and the first opening in the flag and the second pressure through the second opening in the encapsulant, the second opening in the flag, and the enclosure.

Method of making a dual port pressure sensor

A semiconductor device lead frame having enhanced mold locking features is provided. The lead frame has a flag with bendable edge features along the edge of the flag. Each edge feature is shaped to resist movement against encapsulating mold material in a plane of the edge feature. By bending a portion of the edge feature, improved mold locking of the flag is provided in multiple planes.

Lead frame having a flag with in-plane and out-of-plane mold locking features

A pressure sensor package is provided that reduces the occurrence of micro gaps between molding material and metal contacts that can store high-pressure air. The present invention provides this capability by reducing or eliminating interfaces between package molding material and metal contacts. In one embodiment, a control die is electrically coupled to a lead frame and then encapsulated in molding material, using a technique that forms a cavity over a portion of the control die. The cavity exposes contacts on the free surface of the control die that can be electrically coupled to a pressure sensor device using, for example, wire bonding techniques. In another embodiment, a region of a substrate can be encapsulated in molding material, using a technique that forms a cavity over a sub-portion of the substrate that includes contacts. A pressure sensor device can be electrically coupled to the exposed contacts.

Method and apparatus for high pressure sensor device

Fabrication methods are provided for a sensor device packages. An exemplary fabrication method involves bonding a sensor structure and another structure using a sealing structure. The sealing structure surrounds a diaphragm region of the sensor structure and provides an airtight seal between the sensor structure and the other structure to establish a fixed reference pressure on one side of the diaphragm region.

Methods for fabricating sensor device package using a sealing structure

Apparatus and related fabrication methods are provided for a sensor device. The sensor device includes a sensor structure including a first portion having a sensing arrangement formed thereon and a second structure. A sealing structure is interposed between the sensor structure and the second structure, wherein the sealing structure surrounds the first portion of the sensor structure. The sealing structure establishes a fixed reference pressure on a first side of the first portion, and an opposing side of the first portion is exposed to an ambient pressure.

Sensor device with sealing structure

A method and apparatus are described for fabricating an exposed differential pressure sensor () which protects interior electrical components () formed on a topside surface of a differential pressure sensor transducer die () from corrosive particles using a molding compound (), but which vents both sides of a piezoresistive transducer sensor diaphragm () through a first vent hole () formed in an exposed die flag () and a second vent hole () formed in an exposed cap structure (), enabling the sensor diaphragm () to sense differential pressure variations directly or indirectly through a protective gel.

Molded differential PRT pressure sensor

A dual port pressure sensor has a lead frame having a flag having a first opening and a second opening. The lead frame has a flag having a first opening and a second opening. An encapsulant holds the lead frame. The encapsulant is over a top of the flag and a bottom of the flag is uncovered by the encapsulant. A first opening in the encapsulant is aligned with and larger than the first opening in the flag, and a second opening in the encapsulant is aligned with the second opening in the flag. A pressure sensor transducer is attached to the bottom of the flag and covers the first opening in the flag and provides an electrically detectable correlation to a pressure differential based on a first pressure received on its top side and a second pressure received on its bottom side. An integrated circuit is attached to the bottom of the flag and is electrically coupled to the pressure sensor. A lid forming an enclosure with the bottom of the flag. The pressure sensor transducer receives the first pressure through the first opening in the encapsulant and the first opening in the flag and the second pressure through the second opening in the encapsulant, the second opening in the flag, and the enclosure.

Dual port pressure sensor

A method and apparatus are described for fabricating an exposed backside pressure sensor () which protects interior electrical components () formed on a topside surface of a pressure sensor transducer die () from corrosive particles using a protective gel layer () and molding compound (), but which vents a piezoresistive transducer sensor diaphragm () formed on a backside of the pressure sensor transducer die () through a vent hole () formed in an exposed die flag (), enabling the sensor diaphragm () to directly sense pressure variations without the influence of a protective gel.

Exposed pad backside pressure sensor package

Methods are provided for forming Quad Flat No-Lead (QFN) packages. An embodiment includes disposing an active side of a semiconductor chip on a plurality of leads, coupling a plurality of wire bonds to the active side of the semiconductor chip, coupling the plurality of wire bonds to the plurality of leads in a space between the active side and the plurality of leads, and encasing the semiconductor chip, at least a portion of each of the plurality of leads, and the plurality of wire bonds in a mold material to define a mounting side of the QFN package. The mounting side has a perimeter, the plurality of leads are oriented on and exposed on the mounting side within the perimeter, and the plurality of wire bonds are oriented between the active side and the mounting side within the mold material.

Methods for forming quad flat no-lead (QFN) packages

Quad Flat No-Lead (QFN) packages are provided. An embodiment of a QFN package includes a semiconductor chip including an active surface and an inactive surface, a plurality of leads, a plurality of wire bonds configured to couple the plurality of leads to the semiconductor chip, and a mold material including a mounting side and having a perimeter. The active surface is oriented toward the mounting side, the plurality of wire bonds are disposed between the active surface and the mounting side within the mold material, and the plurality of leads are exposed on the mounting side and are at least partially encapsulated within the perimeter of the mold material.

Quad flat no-lead (QFN) packages

Methods and apparatus are provided for decreasing the size of Quad Flat No-Lead (QFN) packages () down to chip-scale packages. Such QFN packages include a first semiconductor chip (), a plurality of recessed leads () having mold lock features, and a mold materialsubstantially encasing all sides of the semiconductor chip. An active surface () of the semiconductor chip is oriented toward a mounting side () of the QFN package, and a plurality of wire bondsdisposed between the active surface and the mounting side couple the active side to the leads. The QFN packages may also include a second semiconductor chip () coupled to a plurality of leads () and to the first semiconductor chip via wire bonds () in a manner similar to the first semiconductor chip.

Methods and apparatus for a Quad Flat No-Lead (QFN) package

A flowmeter is provided that comprises a leadframe assembly () and a body () disposed at least partially around the leadframe assembly (). The body () has a flow passage therethrough that comprises a first channel () having a first port (), a second channel () having a second port (), and a flow altering element () disposed within the second channel (). First and second pressure sensors (and) are disposed within the body () and coupled to the leadframe assembly () for measuring a first pressure within the first channel () and a second pressure within the second channel (), respectively. An integrated circuit (), which is coupled to the leadframe assembly (), to the first pressure sensor (), and to the second pressure sensor (), is configured to determine the rate of flow through the flow passage from the first pressure and the second pressure.

Method of using a differential pressure type flowmeter

A MEMS device () is provided that includes a handle layer () having a sidewall (), a cap () overlying said handle layer (), said cap () having a sidewall (), and a conductive material () disposed on at least a portion of said sidewall of said cap () and said sidewall of said handle layer () to thereby electrically couple said handle layer () to said cap (). A wafer-level method for manufacturing the MEMS device from a substrate () comprising a handle layer () and a cap () overlying the handle layer () is also provided. The method includes making a first cut through the cap () and at least a portion of the substrate () to form a first sidewall (), and depositing a conductive material () onto the first sidewall () to electrically couple the cap () to the substrate ().

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Payson, AZ, United States of America

William G McDonald