Integrated Voltage Regulator Packaging With Bonded RLC Passives
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electronic systems face challenges in integrating voltage regulators and passive components into semiconductor packages effectively, leading to inefficiencies in voltage regulation and space utilization on printed circuit boards, with existing solutions generating noise and requiring large external capacitors and inductors.
Innovation Solution
The integration of integrated voltage regulators (IVRs) and RLC passive components into a single semiconductor package using die-to-die or wafer-to-wafer bonding technology, allowing for closer proximity and improved electrical performance, and the use of different semiconductor fabrication processes for each component to optimize their design and placement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If voltage regulators and passive components are integrated into a single semiconductor package, then electrical performance is improved and space is saved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the integrated system into separate semiconductor dies - one containing the voltage regulator circuit and another containing the passive components. These distinct dies are manufactured using optimized processes for each component type, then bonded together through die-to-die or wafer-to-wafer bonding. This segmentation allows each die to be manufactured with specialized processes while achieving integration benefits, thus improving electrical performance without excessively complicating manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the voltage regulator die and passive component die into a single integrated package, creating a unified system that delivers improved electrical performance. The bonding process merges the two separately optimized dies into one functional unit, achieving the benefits of integration (reduced noise, improved performance, space savings) while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through modular construction.
2Adaptability or versatility
If different semiconductor fabrication processes are used for voltage regulators and passive components, then component optimization is improved, but manufacturing process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent separates the manufacturing of voltage regulators and passive components into distinct fabrication processes applied to separate dies. Each die type can undergo specialized manufacturing optimized for its specific requirements, while the segmentation into separate manufacturing streams prevents process complexity from becoming unmanageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The bonding process acts as an intermediary step that connects the separately manufactured voltage regulator die and passive component die. This intermediary bonding stage allows each component to be optimized through its own fabrication process while ultimately integrating them into a unified system, managing overall manufacturing complexity through structured process sequencing.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If integrated voltage regulators and passive components are placed closer together, then noise is reduced and electrical performance is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the voltage regulator die and passive component die into close proximity through die-to-die or wafer-to-wafer bonding, creating a tightly integrated system. This merging places noise-sensitive passive components immediately adjacent to the voltage regulator, dramatically reducing electromagnetic noise and improving electrical performance while managing precision requirements through standardized bonding processes.
4Area of stationary object
If voltage regulators and passive components are integrated into a single package, then space on printed circuit boards is saved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple discrete components (voltage regulator and passive components) into a single integrated semiconductor package, dramatically reducing the space required on printed circuit boards. This consolidation replaces what would traditionally require separate components and PCB real estate with one unified device, achieving significant space savings while managing integration complexity through modular die construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a nested structure where multiple functional dies are integrated within a single package substrate. The voltage regulator die and passive component die are nested together in close proximity, with each die containing its own functional elements. This nested arrangement maximizes space efficiency by packing multiple functions into one package while maintaining the ability to manufacture each nested component with optimized processes.
Data Source
AI summary
It is highly desirable in electronic systems to conserve space on printed circuit boards (PCB). This disclosure describes voltage regulation in electronic systems, and more specifically to integrating voltage regulators and associated passive components into semiconductor packages with at least a portion of the circuits whose voltage(s) they are regulating.