Reactive solder material

Abstract

Reactive solder material. The reactive solder material may be soldered to semiconductor surfaces such as the backside of a die or wafer. The reactive solder material includes a base solder material alloyed with an active element material. The reactive solder material may also be applied to a portion of a thermal management device. The reactive solder material may be useful as a thermally conductive interface between a semiconductor surface and a thermal management device.

Description

[0001]This is a Divisional Application of Ser. No. 10 / 141,735 filed May 9, 2002, which is presently pending.BACKGROUND[0002]Embodiments described relate to the attachment of devices to a semiconductor die. In particular, embodiments described here relate to thermal management device attachment to a semiconductor die with a solder material.BACKGROUND OF THE RELATED ART[0003]In the fabrication of microchips or dice, semiconductor wafers are processed and sliced into individual dice. The dice may then be used in a wide variety of devices. For example, a die may be used in an electronic device by being electronically coupled to a printed circuit board (PCB) of the device. However, prior to such an electronic coupling a thermal management device such as an integrated heat spreader (IHS) is often attached to a surface of the die. The IHS may help ensure that any heat within the die is adequately dissipated to prevent damage to the die during operation.[0004]In order to attach a thermal ma...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent describes a method of attaching a thermal management device to a semiconductor die using a reactive solder material. The reactive solder material is applied to the surface of the die and a heat spreader is placed on top, with the reactive solder material in between. The reactive solder material is then heated and melted, resulting in a strong bond between the heat spreader and the die. This method provides better heat transfer and is more efficient than conventional methods using polymer adhesives. The patent also describes a semiconductor package that includes a preform of reactive solder material applied to the die surface. Overall, the patent provides a way to securely attach a thermal management device to a semiconductor die for improved heat dissipation.

Problems solved by technology

That is, heat transfer from the die to the IHS is limited by the conductivity of the adhesive between the IHS and the die.

Therefore, for example, even where an IHS of a highly efficient heat dissipating material is employed, the effectiveness of the IHS will nevertheless be substantially compromised where the adhesive is of a relatively low conductivity.

However, solder materials require a metallized surface, flux, and other processing for complete curing and bonding to an otherwise silicon-based non-metal surface.

Metallization incurs additional processing time and equipment.

Flux delivery also incurs additional processing time and is required for bonding of conventional solder material to the metallized surface.

While conventional solder materials display better conductivity, they also require a longer and less efficient process than processes already available for use of conventional polymer adhesives.

Additional equipment cost and expense associated with reduced throughput is also incurred.

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