Semiconductor Die Stack-Up With Heat Spreader for Hot Spot Mitigation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Semiconductor dies experience thermal hotspots due to high thermal resistance in silicon substrates, leading to thermal reliability issues, throttling, and reduced performance, particularly during overclocking and extreme testing conditions.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating an integrated heat spreader with a thermal conductivity higher than the semiconductor substrate, bonded via thin bonding layers, to efficiently dissipate heat and mitigate hotspots.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If an integrated heat spreader is added to the semiconductor die, then thermal management is improved and hot spots are mitigated, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The heat spreader is integrated directly into the semiconductor die structure by bonding it to the back surface of the substrate, merging the thermal management function with the mechanical support function of the substrate. This integration approach improves temperature distribution while minimizing the increase in device complexity by combining multiple functions into a single unified structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite structure consisting of the semiconductor substrate combined with a heat spreader layer having different thermal properties. This composite material approach allows the device to simultaneously maintain electrical functionality and achieve superior thermal management, resolving the contradiction between improved temperature control and increased device complexity.
2Reliability
If power is reduced to mitigate hot spots, then thermal reliability is improved, but performance and frequency specifications deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the thermal management function from the power consumption constraint by introducing a dedicated heat spreader component. This allows the semiconductor device to maintain high power consumption for performance while separately addressing thermal reliability through the heat spreader, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and productivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The integrated heat spreader effectively reduces thermal resistance, improving thermal management and maintaining performance under stress conditions, thereby enhancing overclocking capabilities and reducing thermal design power capping.
Implementation Method 1
Incorporating an integrated heat spreader with a thermal conductivity higher than the semiconductor substrate, bonded via thin bonding layers, to efficiently dissipate heat and mitigate hotspots
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments disclosed herein include semiconductor dies and methods of forming such dies. In an embodiment, the semiconductor die comprises a semiconductor substrate, an active device layer in the semiconductor substrate, where the active device layer comprises one or more transistors, an interconnect layer over a first surface of the active device layer, a first bonding layer over a surface of the semiconductor substrate, a second bonding layer secured to the first bonding layer, and a heat spreader attached to the second bonding layer.