Self-aligned Chip Carrier for Optical Waveguide Integration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current packaging technologies for light emitting/receiving chips face challenges in achieving precise alignment and reproducibility with optical waveguides in circuit boards, often requiring high-performance lenses and precise control of solder ball height and melting during reflow processes.
Innovation Solution
A chip carrier with a base and connecting portion, designed for self-alignment with optical waveguides, where the connecting portion is narrower than the base and protrudes to allow for insertion into a substrate slot, enabling the chip to align optimally without direct contact, using high thermal conductivity and high-frequency materials for enhanced performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the chip mounted substrate and the circuit board are connected through the ball grid array (BGA), then electrical connection is achieved, but alignment accuracy and horizontal level precision are difficult to control due to uncertainty in solder ball height and melting degree
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a dedicated carrier structure as an intermediary component between the chip mounted substrate and the circuit board. This carrier includes a base portion with a first surface for mounting the chip substrate and a second surface for insertion into the circuit board slot, providing a stable mechanical interface that eliminates alignment uncertainty caused by BGA solder ball variations
Solution Approach 2:
The connection system is segmented into three independent components: the chip mounted substrate, the carrier structure, and the circuit board. The carrier acts as a separate alignment reference that decouples the optical alignment requirements from the electrical connection requirements, allowing each component to be optimized independently
2Use of energy by moving object
If the light emitting chip projects light through the substrate via(s) to the optical waveguide, then light transmission is achieved, but high-performance lens is required to assist alignment due to the far distance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions the alignment problem from a two-dimensional planar connection to a three-dimensional vertical insertion structure. The carrier's base portion extends downward to insert into the circuit board slot, bringing the chip into close proximity with the optical waveguide in the vertical dimension, thereby eliminating the need for long-distance optical alignment through lenses
3Ease of manufacture
If a common packaging approach is used to flip or turn over the substrate mounted with the chip, then the light emitting chip can be packed into the circuit board, but alignment accuracy and horizontal level precision are difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The carrier structure is pre-configured with the base portion having a specific geometry that matches the circuit board slot. The chip substrate is mounted on the base portion before insertion, establishing the alignment reference in advance. This preliminary structural configuration ensures that when the carrier is inserted into the circuit board, the chip is automatically positioned at the correct location and orientation relative to the optical waveguide
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure relates to a chip carrier, suitable for being inserted into a corresponding substrate. The light emitting/receiving chip mounted on the chip carrier is disposed within the corresponding substrate and aligned to the waveguide embedded in the corresponding substrate with an appropriate distance.