Liquid Dispensing for Integrated Circuit Substrate Tuning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ultra large scale integration (ULSI) production techniques for integrated circuit chips lack the precision required for certain applications, particularly in sensors, and conventional laser fuses pose alignment issues and limitations in processing.
Innovation Solution
A method involving testing semiconductor device structures on a wafer, selectively altering circuit elements with a conductive substance, such as a liquid or paste, to configure digital and analog elements, allowing for chip-selective modifications without the need for laser tools, thereby enabling broader applications and avoiding alignment problems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional laser fuses are used for digital coding and fine-tuning, then electrical characteristics can be adjusted after final testing, but alignment problems and limited processing capability occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical laser-based fuse cutting system with a chemical system using liquid dispensing and electrochemical etching. Instead of using laser energy to physically cut fuses, the invention uses chemically active liquids that react with metal layers to create conductive or insulating patterns, thereby substituting a mechanical/thermal process with a chemical one that offers better precision and easier manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the fundamental parameter of how fuses are created - from thermal/laser-based physical cutting to chemically-driven selective deposition and etching. By controlling the dispensing parameters of chemically active liquids and the electrochemical etching conditions, the system achieves precise electrical characteristic adjustment without the alignment problems of laser methods.
2Adaptability or versatility
If chip-selective modifications are made after wafer manufacturing, then individual chip customization is enabled, but additional processing steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates fuse structures and conductive pathways into the wafer during the initial manufacturing process, before individual chip testing and customization. This preliminary preparation of the physical infrastructure (metal layers, fuse locations, conductive paths) allows subsequent selective modification using liquid dispensing and electrochemical etching to proceed with simpler, more direct processing steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces chemically active liquids as an intermediary medium between the control system and the wafer structures. These liquids serve as a versatile tool that can selectively interact with different metal layers and fuse structures based on dispensing location and chemical composition, enabling complex customization patterns through relatively simple dispensing operations without requiring complex processing equipment.
3Productivity
If conventional ULSI production techniques are used, then high integration is achieved, but sensor precision requirements cannot be met
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by enabling individualized customization of each chip or sensor element on the wafer after manufacturing. While the wafer maintains high integration with multiple devices, each device can have its electrical characteristics (resistance, conductivity, fuse states) locally adjusted through selective liquid dispensing and electrochemical etching, thereby achieving both high integration and individual precision optimization.
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
This approach allows for precise electrical property adjustments in integrated circuit chips, enabling the production of customized semiconductor devices with improved precision and flexibility, optimizing individual chip performance without the limitations of conventional laser fuses.
Implementation Method 1
a liquid is provided on a selected portion of the wafer to selectively alter at least one circuit element
Data Source
AI summary
A method of manufacturing a wafer. The method includes providing a wafer that includes a plurality of semiconductor device structures, and testing at least one of the plurality of semiconductor device structures. Based on a test result, a liquid is provided on a selected portion of the wafer to selectively alter at least one circuit element within the at least one of the plurality of semiconductor device structures.