Low Profile Semiconductor Socket With Slidable Cover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional socket designs for semiconductor chips face challenges in reducing the vertical profile without introducing issues like die cracking or package substrate warping, which hinders the pursuit of thinner computer and handset designs.
Innovation Solution
A socket design featuring a housing and a slidable cover with an opening that allows the circuit board to seat directly on the housing, utilizing a cam lever mechanism for secure engagement of conductor pins, enabling zero insertion force (ZIF) operation and reducing the overall vertical profile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the vertical profile of the socket and package device is reduced by thinning the semiconductor chip or package substrate, then the overall height is decreased enabling thinner electronic devices, but die cracking or package substrate warping occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The socket is divided into two main segments: a housing that provides structural support and mounting functions, and a cover that provides electrical contact and protection. This segmentation allows the circuit board to seat on the housing rather than requiring a tall cover structure, reducing the vertical profile without compromising structural integrity or electrical connection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention shifts the seating surface from the top of a tall cover structure (vertical dimension) to the top surface of the housing (horizontal dimension). By providing a seating surface on the housing rather than requiring height in the cover, the design reduces vertical profile while maintaining structural support and electrical connection functions.
2Reliability
If a conventional fortress-like cover structure is used to enclose the socket cavities, then the socket provides structural support and electrical contact, but the vertical profile increases preventing thinner electronic device designs
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the essential functions of the conventional cover (electrical contact and protection) and separates them from the height-increasing fortress-like enclosure structure. The cover is designed with openings that allow the circuit board to contact the housing directly, removing the need for a tall enclosing structure while maintaining electrical connectivity and protection functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The seating surface is relocated from the vertical top of a tall cover to the horizontal top surface of the housing. This dimensional shift allows the circuit board to be supported and electrically connected without requiring significant vertical space, thereby reducing the overall profile height while maintaining structural support reliability.
3Length of moving object
If the cover height is reduced to lower the vertical profile, then thinner electronic devices become possible, but the socket can no longer provide adequate structural support or secure engagement
Solution Approach 1:
The socket functions are segmented between the housing and cover: the housing provides structural support, mounting, and a seating surface for the circuit board, while the cover provides electrical contact and protection. This segmentation allows the housing to bear the structural support load independently, enabling a low-profile cover design without compromising overall structural strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The structural support function is moved from the vertical cover structure to the horizontal housing structure. By providing a seating surface on the housing top surface rather than relying on cover height, the design achieves adequate structural support with minimal vertical profile, enabling thinner electronic devices while maintaining engagement strength.
Data Source
AI summary
Various circuit board sockets and methods of manufacturing and using the same are disclosed. In one aspect, a method of manufacturing is provided that includes forming a socket operable to receive a first circuit board. The socket includes a housing and a cover slidedly coupled to the housing. The cover has an opening sized to enable the first circuit board to seat on the housing.