The present disclosure relates to semiconductor devices and methods for manufacturing the semiconductor devices, and specifically relates to semiconductor devices including a chip-on-chip structure in which a plurality of semiconductor chips are stacked with each other, and methods for manufacturing the semiconductor devices.
In systems such as digital televisions and recorders, data amount to be processed has been significantly increasing with increased functionality. The capacity of semiconductor memories mounted on the systems is accordingly increasing. Further, semiconductor memories with high data transfer rate have been demanded. Semiconductor devices in which a logic circuit including a memory controller and a memory are integrally mounted have been developed so that a lot of semiconductor memories can be mounted on the system.
Techniques of integrally forming a logic circuit and a memory include a system-on-chip (SoC) technique in which a logic circuit chip and a memory chip are integrated on one chip, and a system-in-package (SiP) technique in which a logic circuit chip and a memory chip are stacked with each other and accommodated in one package. According to the SiP technique, the chips can be produced at lower costs, have higher functionality, consume less power, and can be reduced in size and weight, as demanded, and can be flexibly applied to various specifications. Therefore, systems utilizing the SiP structure with relatively low manufacturing cost are now increasing.
The SiP structure is classified into four types according to differences in the structure, i.e., a chip-on-chip (CoC) type, a stacked chip type, a package-on-package type, and a substrate connection type. Among these types, the CoC type has a structure in which a chip is stacked on a base chip, and this structure enables high speed processing due to a short interconnection length between circuits provided at the respective chips.
In conventional CoC semiconductor devices, the technique for connecting chips whose circuit sides face each other includes connection through bumps (see, e.g., Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-146728).
However, in the conventional semiconductor devices, the stacked chip configuration is limited by the chip size. In the case where a memory chip and a logic circuit chip are stacked with each other, it is necessary to place the memory chip larger in size than the logic circuit chip, above the logic circuit chip smaller in size than the memory chip, considering that these chips are mounted on a base (e.g., a substrate) by flip-chip (FC) connection afterward. Thus, if the logic circuit chip is equivalent to or larger in size than the memory chip, it is impossible to obtain a semiconductor device having a CoC structure by the conventional method. Using a memory chip larger in size than the logic circuit chip may be one of methods for this problem, but preparing an unnecessarily large memory chip may reduce the number of chips per wafer and increase costs.
The present disclosure is therefore intended to stack semiconductor chips by the chip-on-chip technique with no limitation on size of the semiconductor chips.
To achieve the above objective, a semiconductor device of the present disclosure includes an expanded semiconductor chip having an expanded portion which extends outward from a side surface of a semiconductor chip.
Specifically, a semiconductor device of the present disclosure includes: an expanded semiconductor chip including a first semiconductor chip and an expanded portion which extends outward from a side surface of the first semiconductor chip; a second semiconductor chip provided so as to be connected to the expanded semiconductor chip via a plurality of first bumps; and a base provided so as to be connected to the expanded semiconductor chip via a plurality of second bumps, wherein the first bumps are formed between the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip, and the second bumps are formed between the expanded portion and the base.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip can be stacked with each other by CoC connection and can be mounted on the base by FC connection, with no limitation on sizes of the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip.
Preferably, in the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the expanded semiconductor chip has a re-distribution interconnect portion extending from a front surface of the first semiconductor chip to a front surface of the expanded portion, and the a first electrode pad to be connected to a corresponding one of the first bumps and a second electrode pad to be connected to a corresponding one of the second bumps are formed in the re-distribution interconnect portion, and the first electrode pad and the second electrode pad are connected to each other via an interconnect formed in the re-distribution interconnect portion.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, a length of each side of the front surface of the expanded semiconductor chip is preferably longer than a length of each side of a front surface of the second semiconductor chip.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the expanded portion may be made of a resin material covering the side surface of the first semiconductor chip.
Preferably, in the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the second semiconductor chip includes a third electrode pad connected to a corresponding one of the first bumps, the base includes a fourth electrode pad connected to a corresponding one of the second bumps, and a sum of thicknesses of the second electrode pad, the corresponding one of the second bumps, and the fourth electrode pad is larger than a sum of thicknesses of the first electrode pad, the corresponding one of the first bumps, the third electrode pad, and the second semiconductor chip.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the second electrode pad may be thicker than the first electrode pad.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the thickness of the fourth electrode pad is preferably greater at least than a difference between a sum of the thickness of the second electrode pad and the thickness of the corresponding one of the second bump, and the thickness of the second semiconductor chip.
Preferably, in the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the base has a plurality of external terminals on a surface opposite to a surface facing the expanded semiconductor chip, and a distance between adjacent ones of the second bumps is greater than a distance between adjacent ones of the first bumps, and is smaller than a distance between adjacent ones of the external terminals.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, a groove may be formed in a region of the base where the second semiconductor chip overlaps, in a surface facing the second semiconductor chip.
In the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the second semiconductor chip may be a stacked-type semiconductor chip including a plurality of semiconductor chips stacked one another, and the stacked semiconductor chips may be connected with one another by a through electrode.
A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device of the present disclosure includes: preparing an expanded semiconductor chip including a first semiconductor chip and an expanded portion provided on a side surface of the first semiconductor chip, a second semiconductor chip, and a base; forming a plurality of first bumps on the first semiconductor chip of the expanded semiconductor chip, and providing a chip-on-chip connection between the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip via the first bumps, and forming a plurality of second bumps on the expanded portion of the expanded semiconductor chip, and providing a connection between the expanded portion and the base via the second bumps.
In the method for manufacturing a semiconductor device of the present disclosure, the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip can be stacked with each other by CoC connection and can be mounted on the base by FC connection, with no limitation on sizes of the first semiconductor chip and the second semiconductor chip.
As described above, according to the semiconductor device of the present disclosure and the method for manufacturing the semiconductor device, the semiconductor chips can be stacked with each other by chip-on-chip connection and can be mounted on the base by flip-chip connection, with no limitation on size of the semiconductor chips.
A semiconductor device of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
The expanded semiconductor chip 3 includes the expanded portion 2 made of resin, for example, and extending outward from a side surface of the first semiconductor chip 1a. A re-distribution interconnect portion 7 including an interconnect (not shown) is provided on a front surface (the lower surface in
A plurality of third electrode pads 6c are provided on the front surface (the upper surface in
A plurality of fourth electrode pads 6d (only one pad 6d is shown in
A plurality of fifth electrode pads 6e are provided on a back surface (the lower surface in
Now, the re-distribution interconnect portion 7 will be described in detail with reference to
As illustrated in
In the semiconductor device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, semiconductor chips can be stacked with each other by CoC connection and mounted on a substrate by FC connection with no limitation on size of the semiconductor chips.
The re-distribution interconnect portion 7 does not need to be provided on the entire front surfaces of the first semiconductor chip 1a and the expanded portion 2. The re-distribution interconnect portion 7 may be provided such that the front surface of the first semiconductor chip 1a at a central portion of the expanded semiconductor chip 3 is exposed, and the second semiconductor chip 1b may be directly mounted on the front surface of the first semiconductor chip 1a without interposing the re-distribution interconnect portion 7 therebetween. Further, although the re-distribution interconnect portion 7 is one layer in
As a material for the re-distribution interconnect 8, for example, copper (Cu) or silver (Ag) with which the re-distribution interconnect 8 can be formed at relatively low cost by electroplating is used.
As materials for the first electrode pad 6a, the second electrode pad 6b, the third electrode pad 6c, and the fourth electrode pad 6d, Cu, nickel (Ni), aluminum (Al), a Ni/gold (Au) layered film, an Al/Au layered film, a titanium (Ti)/Ni/Au layered film, or a Ti/Al/Au layered film, etc., is used.
As materials for the first bump 4a, the second bump 4b, and the third bump 4c, tin (Sn)-lead (Pb) based solder, Sn solder, Sn—Ag based solder, Sn—Ag—Cu based solder, or Sn—Ag—Cu—Ni based solder, etc., is used for a highly reliable connection. In addition, for low-temperature solder connection, solder whose melting point is low about 130° C. to 180° C., such as Sn-bismuth (Bi) based solder, Sn—Bi—Ag based solder, Sn—Bi-indium (In) based solder, Sn—Bi—In—Ag based solder, Sn—In based solder, or Sn—In—Ag based solder, etc., may also be used. Further, as materials for the first bump 4a and the second bump 4b, Au, Ni or Cu, etc., may also be used. Using these materials enables the chip and the substrate to be connected at low temperature by pressure welding them under high pressure conditions.
The first electrode pad 6a and the second electrode pad 6b may be made of the same metal material, and the first bump 4a and the second bump 4b may be made of the same metal material. In this configuration, the first electrode pad 6a and the second electrode pad 6b can be formed using the same mask, and the first bump 4a and the second bump 4b can be formed using the same mask, and the costs can be accordingly reduced.
The expanded portion 2 may be formed to cover the side surface of the first semiconductor chip 1a, and also may be formed to cover not only the side surface, but also at least the upper or lower surface of the first semiconductor chip 1a.
Preferably, the substrate 5 is made of resin that is flexible and strong against bending. Using the substrate 5 made of such resin is advantageous in electrically connecting a semiconductor package and a semiconductor chip. In this case, the substrate 5 may cover the entire surface of the semiconductor chip, or may be partially cover the semiconductor chip. Further, the substrate 5 made of resin may be replaced with a lead frame. Thus, the semiconductor device can be manufactured using low cost materials.
Now, a method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to
First, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
Next, as illustrated in
The semiconductor device of the present embodiment can be obtained by the steps described above.
In the method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, semiconductor chips can be stacked with each other by CoC connection and mounted on a substrate by FC connection with no limitation on size of the semiconductor chips.
In the method for manufacturing the semiconductor device of the present embodiment, the first underfill 9a and the second underfill 9b, for example, are injected and cured after the CoC connection and the FC connection. However, the underfills may be applied before the CoC connection and the FC connection. In this case, each of the CoC connection and the FC connection, and the formation of the underfills can be achieved in the same step, and thus, it is possible to reduce the manufacturing steps. Further, in the case where a gap between connected portions which is formed in the connection step (e.g., a gap between the first bumps 4a) is narrow (e.g., about 5 μnm to 40 μm), it is difficult to fill the gap with the underfill. Therefore, applying the underfill before connection improves filling properties.
In
In the present embodiment, a solder ball is used to form the bump, but the solder ball may be replaced with a solder paste applied by a screen printing method.
In the present embodiment, a thickness relationship among the bumps 4a and 4b and the electrode pads 6a, 6b, 6c and 6d is set such that there is no obstacle in flip-chip connecting the expanded semiconductor chip 3 and the substrate 5. That is, the thicknesses may be such that the second semiconductor chip 1b and the substrate 5 are not in contact with each other. Thus, the sum of the thicknesses of the second electrode pad 6b, the second bump 4b, and the fourth electrode pad 6d needs to be larger at least than the sum of the thicknesses of the first electrode pad 6a, the first bump 4a, the third electrode pad 6c, and the second semiconductor chip 1b.
In general, the thickness of each of the electrode pads 6a, 6b, 6c and 6d is about 5 μm to 10 μm, and the thickness of the second semiconductor chip 1b is about 20 μm to 150 μm. This means that each second bump 4b needs to be thick. However, if the thickness of the second bump 4b is increased while pursuing multiple pins and increased density of the second bumps 4b, adjacent bumps may be electrically shorted. The above problem can be avoided by significantly reducing the thickness of the second semiconductor chip 1b. However, for example, if the thickness of the second semiconductor chip 1b is reduced to 100 μm or thinner, the semiconductor chip may be very easily broken due to stress during handling in the manufacturing process, resulting in decreases in yield.
(Variation)
The first to third variations of one embodiment of the present disclosure for solving the above problems will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The second bumps 4b connecting the expanded semiconductor chip 3 and the substrate 5 may be arranged in multiple lines to achieve multiple pins and increased density of the bumps, as in the first variation and the second variation of the one embodiment. The first bumps 4a located between the expanded semiconductor chip 3 and the second semiconductor chip 1b have a smaller center distance between adjacent bumps (i.e., a smaller bump pitch) than the second bumps 4b located between the expanded semiconductor chip 3 and the substrate 5. Further, the second bumps 4b have a smaller bump pitch than the third bumps 4c provided on one of the surfaces of the substrate 5 which is opposite to the surface connected to the first semiconductor chip 1a. Specifically, the bump pitch of the first bumps 4a is about 20 μm to 50 μm to achieve multiple pins associated with an increase in the bandwidth of the memory chip and an increase in processing speed. The bump pitch of the second bumps 4b is about 40 μm to 200 μm, and the bump pitch of the third bumps 4c is about 400 μm to 1000 μm. Due to these configurations, it is possible to achieve multiple pins associated with an increase in the bandwidth of the memory chip and an increase in processing speed, and the semiconductor device can be preferably mounted on the mother board without using an expensive mother board with fine wiring rules.
As illustrated in
A semiconductor device according to the fourth variation of the embodiment which is intended to increase the capacity of the memory chip will be described with reference to
As described above, according to the semiconductor device of the present disclosure, semiconductor chips can be stacked with each other by CoC connection and mounted on a substrate by FC connection with no limitation on size of the semiconductor chips, and the present disclosure is especially useful as a semiconductor device having a CoC structure in which a plurality of semiconductor chips are stacked, and a method for manufacturing the semiconductor device.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2011-222869 | Oct 2011 | JP | national |
This is a continuation of International Application No. PCT/JP2012/005359 filed on Aug. 27, 2012, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2011-222869 filed on Oct. 7, 2011. The entire disclosures of these applications are incorporated by reference herein.
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International Search Report of PCT Application No. PCT/JP2012/005359 dated Sep. 25, 2012. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20140117542 A1 | May 2014 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/JP2012/005359 | Aug 2012 | US |
Child | 14149886 | US |