Inter-Die Cooling Structure in Stacked Semiconductors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Stacked semiconductor devices experience performance degradation and potential failures due to heat accumulation, which existing bonding techniques fail to adequately address through efficient heat dissipation.
Innovation Solution
Integration of a cooling structure within the stacked semiconductor device, comprising heat removal structures, heat dissipation structures, and inter-die cooling structures made of thermally conductive materials, which are formed during the device's fabrication to effectively dissipate heat from the dies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If bonding techniques are used to form stacked semiconductor devices, then device integration and three-dimensional configuration are achieved, but heat accumulation occurs causing performance degradation and potential failures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the semiconductor device into multiple stacked dies (first die, second die, third die) bonded together, with each die potentially containing independent heat removal structures. This segmentation allows heat to be managed at multiple levels within the stack, preventing cumulative heat buildup that would occur in a single integrated device, thereby maintaining reliability while achieving high integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces heat removal structures as intermediary elements between the stacked dies and the external environment. These structures (including heat sinks, thermal vias, and cooling channels) act as mediators that facilitate heat transfer from the high-density die stack to the surrounding cooling medium, resolving the contradiction between integrated design and heat management.
2Speed
If higher operating voltages and speeds are implemented, then device performance is improved, but heat generation increases leading to performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates heat removal structures during the fabrication process itself, rather than adding them as post-processing components. Thermal vias and heat sinks are formed concurrently with the die stacking process, ensuring cooling infrastructure is already in place before high-power operation begins, preventing thermal runaway and enabling sustained high-speed performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements heat removal structures at specific locations within the stacked device architecture, such as between individual dies and at the base of the stack. This localized approach to thermal management addresses hot spots where they occur most critically, allowing the device to maintain high operating speeds without uniform overheating throughout the entire structure.
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
The cooling structure enhances the operational efficiency of stacked semiconductor devices by allowing them to operate at higher voltages and speeds, reducing failures, and increasing reliability through efficient heat management.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling structure including a plurality of heat removal structures configured to remove heat from at least one of the first die or the second die
Data Source
AI summary
A stacked semiconductor device includes a cooling structure to increase the cooling efficiency of the stacked semiconductor device. The cooling structure includes various types of cooling components integrated into the stacked semiconductor device that are configured to remove and/or dissipate heat from dies of the stacked semiconductor device. In this way, the cooling structure reduces device failures and permits the stacked semiconductor device to operate at greater voltages, greater speeds, and/or other increased performance parameters by removing and/or dissipating heat from the stacked semiconductor device.