X-Ray Photon Detector Packaging Without TSVs for Lower-Cost Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional photon detectors, particularly in medical X-ray imaging, face challenges in achieving high image quality and reducing manufacturing costs due to the need for large-area ASICs and complex through-silicon vias (TSVs) to connect sensor pixels and evaluation circuits, which increases costs and complicates the manufacturing process.
Innovation Solution
A photon detector design with a detector circuit comprising a smaller ASIC embedded in a housing, using a contact layer for signal transmission and eliminating the need for TSVs, allowing for cost-effective manufacturing and precise alignment with sensor elements, and utilizing fan-out wafer-level chip-scale packaging for adaptable detector circuits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If separate production processes are used for the semiconductor substrate and the insulating layer, then manufacturing flexibility is maintained, but production time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the production of the semiconductor substrate and the insulating layer into a single integrated process. The insulating layer is formed simultaneously with the semiconductor substrate in the same reaction chamber using alternating pulse sequences, eliminating the need for separate production steps and reducing production time while maintaining manufacturing flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The insulating layer is formed in advance during the substrate production process itself, before the sensor structure is completed. This preliminary formation of the insulating layer eliminates subsequent separate production steps and reduces overall production time.
2Reliability
If a thick insulating layer is deposited to ensure complete coverage, then insulation performance improves, but deposition time increases and production efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses periodic alternating pulse sequences where plasma phases and purge phases are alternated. This periodic action enables complete monolayer coverage to be achieved in a single deposition cycle rather than requiring multiple sequential layers, significantly reducing deposition time while ensuring complete coverage and insulation performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The deposition process continues uninterrupted in a single cycle with alternating pulses that continuously build up the insulating layer with complete coverage at each stage, eliminating the need for multiple separate deposition cycles and reducing total deposition time.
3Manufacturing precision
If multiple production cycles are used to form complete monolayers, then film quality and coverage are improved, but production time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs periodic alternating pulse sequences that deposit complete monolayers in a single cycle through coordinated plasma and purge phases. This periodic action ensures complete coverage and high film quality without requiring multiple production cycles, thereby reducing production time while maintaining manufacturing precision.
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
This design reduces manufacturing costs, enhances precision, and improves image quality by enabling closer pixel alignment and eliminating the need for costly through-silicon vias, while allowing for identical components to be used across different photon detectors with varying geometries.
Implementation Method 1
The insulating layer 104 is formed in a plasma CVD apparatus
Implementation Method 2
The metal layer 106 is formed in an ion beam sputtering apparatus
Implementation Method 3
a first photoresist pattern is formed on the semiconductor substrate 101
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5
AI summary
A photon detector according to the invention, in particular an X-ray detector (3), comprises at least one sensor element (10) formed by a semiconductor material and sensitive to incident radiation, which forms a pixel matrix with a number of sensor pixels (12), and a detector circuit (20) which is located downstream of the sensor element (10) in the direction of radiation incidence and which serves to detect charge carriers generated in the semiconductor material of the sensor element (10) due to radiation. The detector circuit (20) includes an integrated circuit (22) with a number of detector pixels (24) which are contacted with the sensor pixels (12) for signal transmission purposes. The area of the integrated circuit (22) is smaller than the area of the sensor element (10) by more than one pixel width of the sensor pixels (12).The detector circuit (20) has a housing (30) surrounding the integrated circuit (22), in which the integrated circuit (22) is embedded and on which a contacting layer (34) is formed on a pixel side (32) facing the sensor element (10), in which contact points for signal transmission connection of the detector pixels (24) with the correspondingly assigned sensor pixels (12) as well as conductor tracks (36,38) for connecting the contact points with the detector pixels (24) of the integrated circuit (22) are formed.