Semiconductor Dummy Wire Protrusion for Via Density
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Solution Overview
Problem
The presence of dummy wires connected to dummy vias in semiconductor integrated circuit devices leads to reduced designability and increased fabrication costs due to the area they occupy, which can cause signal delays and necessitate wire detours or increased wire area, complicating the layout and increasing chip size.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor integrated circuit device with a dummy via and a dummy wire connected to it, where the dummy wire has a smaller protrusion amount or area compared to the intermediate wires in stacked via structures, allowing for easier placement in dense areas without the need for wire detours or increased area, thus minimizing designability issues and fabrication costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a dummy wire is formed with standard dimensions in the same wiring layer as intermediate wires, then the dummy via can be positioned to meet via density requirements, but the dummy wire occupies excessive area causing signal delays and requiring wire detours
Solution Approach 1:
The dummy wire is given different dimensions than standard intermediate wires. Specifically, the protrusion amount of the dummy wire from the via center is set to be smaller than that of intermediate wires, and the area of the dummy wire is set to be smaller than the area of intermediate wires. This local differentiation allows the dummy wire to occupy less area and cause fewer interference problems while still meeting via density requirements.
2Quantity of substance
If the area of wires is increased to decrease wire density, then wire density decreases, but chip area increases resulting in increased fabrication cost
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of increasing the area of all wires to decrease density, the invention locally differentiates the dummy wire dimensions from standard intermediate wires. The dummy wire has a smaller protrusion amount and smaller area, allowing it to occupy less space and avoid the need to increase overall chip area while still achieving the desired wire density distribution.
3Ease of manufacture
If wires are made to detour around dense areas, then wire placement becomes possible, but wire length increases resulting in signal delay
Solution Approach 1:
The dummy wire is designed with a smaller protrusion amount compared to intermediate wires, allowing it to fit in dense areas without requiring other wires to detour. This local optimization enables direct wire routing while maintaining proper via density, avoiding the signal delays that would result from longer detour paths.
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor integrated circuit device including a dummy via is disclosed. In the semiconductor integrated circuit device, problems such as reduction in the designability and increase in fabrication cost which result from the existence of a dummy wire connected to the dummy via are suppressed. The semiconductor integrated circuit device includes a substrate and three or more wiring layers formed on the substrate. The dummy via connects between a first wiring layer and a second wiring layer. The dummy wire connected to the dummy via exists in the second wiring layer. A protrusion amount of the dummy wire is smaller than a protrusion amount of an intermediate wire included in a stacked via structure.