Semiconductor Package Interface Chip for Flexible Pad Connectivity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional semiconductor packages require new designs when semiconductor chips with different pad arrangements are developed, leading to inefficiencies in connecting pads to external electrodes due to direct wire bonding limitations.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor package design that includes an interface chip with a fuse circuit, decoder, and switch to selectively connect signal pads to external electrodes, allowing for flexible pad arrangement compatibility by storing and decoding connection information to activate appropriate connections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If direct wire bonding is used to connect pads to external electrodes, then the connection is simple and direct, but the package must be redesigned for each new pad arrangement of semiconductor chips
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an interface chip as an intermediary component between the semiconductor chip and the external electrodes. This interface chip contains multiple interface pads that can be selectively connected to different pad arrangements of semiconductor chips through wire bonding, while maintaining a standardized external electrode interface. The intermediary layer enables compatibility with various pad arrangements without requiring redesign of the entire package for each new chip type.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the connection interface into two distinct layers: the interface chip layer with multiple interface pads, and the external electrode layer with fixed positions. This segmentation allows the interface chip to adapt to different semiconductor chip pad arrangements while the external electrodes maintain a standardized configuration, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing simplicity and adaptability.
2Reliability
If a new package design is developed for each new semiconductor chip with different pad arrangements, then the connection is optimized for that specific chip, but the development time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The interface chip is designed with universal functionality to accommodate multiple semiconductor chip types with different pad arrangements. By providing a standardized interface with multiple selectable connection points, the same interface chip design can serve multiple chip variants, eliminating the need for new package designs for each chip type while maintaining optimized connections.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface chip is pre-configured with multiple interface pads arranged to accommodate various pad layouts of different semiconductor chips. This preliminary preparation of the interface structure allows for quick adaptation to new chip types without requiring time-consuming redesign and revalidation of the entire package structure.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple interface pads are provided on the interface chip, then compatibility with different pad arrangements is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The interface chip acts as a mediator that absorbs the complexity of multiple pad arrangements internally while presenting a simplified standardized interface externally. The multiple interface pads are managed through control logic that selectively activates appropriate connections based on the specific semiconductor chip type, hiding the internal complexity from the external interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface chip incorporates dynamic connection capabilities through controllable switches or multiplexers that can selectively activate different interface pad connections based on the detected semiconductor chip type. This dynamic reconfiguration allows the interface to adapt to different pad arrangements without requiring all pads to be permanently connected, managing complexity through software or control logic rather than fixed hardware.
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor package includes an external electrode, an interface chip, and a semiconductor chip. The interface chip includes an external interface pad bonded to the external electrode, a plurality of internal interface pads, and an interface circuit coupled between the external interface pad and the plurality of internal interface pads. The semiconductor chip includes a signal pad that is selectively bonded to one of the plurality of internal interface pads. The interface circuit activates a connection between a selected pad, which corresponds to a pad that is bonded to the signal pad among the plurality of internal interface pads, and the external interface pad, and deactivates connections between unselected pads, which correspond to pads that are not bonded to the signal pad among the plurality of internal interface pads, and the external interface pad.