Claims
- 1. A method for aligning a first semiconductor die with a second semiconductor die, wherein the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die are arranged active face to active face, wherein an active face contains circuitry for communicating between semiconductor dies, the method comprising;
generating light on an active face of the first semiconductor die; collimating the light within the active face of the first semiconductor die into a first beam of light; receiving the first beam of light on an active face of the second semiconductor die; determining a position of the first beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and determining an alignment of the second semiconductor die to the first semiconductor die based on the determined position.
- 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
generating light on the active face of the first semiconductor die; collimating the light into a second beam of light, wherein the second beam of light is at an angle to the first beam of light; receiving the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; determining a position of the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and determining a distance between the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die by analyzing the position of the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die compared to the position of the first beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die.
- 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the light waves are generated by one of:
a Zener diode; a light emitting diode (LED); a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL); and an avalanche breakdown PN diode.
- 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first beam of light is collimated by shining the first beam of light through annuli created on metal layers on the first semiconductor die.
- 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the shape of the annuli can include:
squares; circles; and octagons.
- 6. The method of claim 4, wherein the angle of the first beam of light can be determined by creating the annuli in the metal layers such that a line through the centers of the annuli is set at a desired angle from the perpendicular axis of the active face of the first semiconductor die.
- 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first beam of light is received on the active face of the second semiconductor die by a p-n junction photo-detector.
- 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of photo-detectors on the active face of the second semiconductor die for receiving the first beam of light.
- 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of photo-detectors are arranged in a vector.
- 10. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of photo-detectors are arranged in an array.
- 11. The method of claim 2, further comprising:
generating light on the active face of the first semiconductor die; collimating the light into a third beam of light, wherein the third beam of light is not coplanar with the first and second beams of light; receiving the third beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; determining a position of the third beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and determining an orientation of the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die in all six degrees of alignment by analyzing the positions of the first, second, and third beams of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die.
- 12. An apparatus for aligning a first semiconductor die with a second semiconductor die, wherein the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die are arranged active face to active face, wherein an active face contains circuitry for communicating between semiconductor dies, the method comprising;
a light generating mechanism configured to generate light on an active face of the first semiconductor die; a collimating mechanism configured to collimate the light within the active face of the first semiconductor die into a first beam of light; a receiving mechanism configured to receive the first beam of light on an active face of the second semiconductor die; a determination mechanism configured to determine a position of the first beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and an alignment mechanism configured to determine an alignment of the second semiconductor die to the first semiconductor die based on the determined position.
- 13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising:
a second light generating mechanism configured to generate light on the active face of the first semiconductor die; a second collimating mechanism configured to collimate the light into a second beam of light, wherein the second beam of light is at an angle to the first beam of light; a second receiving mechanism configured to receive the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and a second determining mechanism configured to determine a position of the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; wherein the alignment mechanism is further configured to determine a distance between the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die by analyzing the position of the second beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die compared to the position of the first beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the light generating mechanism comprises one of:
a Zener diode; a light emitting diode (LED); a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL); and an avalanche breakdown PN diode.
- 15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the collimating mechanism is further configured to collimate the first beam of light by shining the first beam of light through annuli created on metal layers on the first semiconductor die.
- 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the shape of the annuli can include:
squares; circles; and octagons.
- 17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the angle of the first beam of light can be determined by creating the annuli in the metal layers such that a line through the centers of the annuli is set at a desired angle from the perpendicular axis of the active face of the first semiconductor die.
- 18. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the first beam of light is received on the active face of the second semiconductor die by a p-n junction photo-detector.
- 19. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the receiving mechanism is further configured to receiving the first beam of light on a plurality of photo-detectors on the active face of the second semiconductor die.
- 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the plurality of photo-detectors are arranged in a vector.
- 21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the plurality of photo-detectors are arranged in an array.
- 22. The apparatus of claim 13, further comprising:
a third light generating mechanism configured to generate light on the active face of the first semiconductor die; a third collimating mechanism configured to collimate the light into a third beam of light, wherein the third beam of light is not coplanar with the first and second beams of light; a third receiving mechanism configured to receive the third beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; and a third determining mechanism configured to determine a position of the third beam of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die; wherein the alignment mechanism is further configured to determine an orientation of the first semiconductor die and the second semiconductor die in all six degrees of alignment by analyzing the positions of the first, second, and third beams of light on the active face of the second semiconductor die.
RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application hereby claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/465,316, filed on 24 Apr. 2003, entitled, “A Light Emission Receiving Alignment Technique,” by inventors Robert J. Bosnyak and Robert J. Drost (Attorney Docket No. SUN-P9595PSP).
GOVERNMENT LICENSE RIGHTS
[0002] This invention was made with United States Government support under Contract No. NBCH020055 awarded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration. The United States Government has certain rights in the invention.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60465316 |
Apr 2003 |
US |