WO2009001280A2 - A method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device - Google Patents

A method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2009001280A2
WO2009001280A2 PCT/IB2008/052472 IB2008052472W WO2009001280A2 WO 2009001280 A2 WO2009001280 A2 WO 2009001280A2 IB 2008052472 W IB2008052472 W IB 2008052472W WO 2009001280 A2 WO2009001280 A2 WO 2009001280A2
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WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
chip
sensor device
insertion hole
interconnect carrier
carrier
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PCT/IB2008/052472
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French (fr)
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WO2009001280A3 (en
Inventor
Johannes W. Weekamp
Albert H. J. Immink
Jeroen H. Nieuwenhuis
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Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
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Publication of WO2009001280A2 publication Critical patent/WO2009001280A2/en
Publication of WO2009001280A3 publication Critical patent/WO2009001280A3/en

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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/683—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping
    • H01L21/6835—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping using temporarily an auxiliary support
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/04—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof the devices having at least one potential-jump barrier or surface barrier, e.g. PN junction, depletion layer or carrier concentration layer
    • H01L21/50—Assembly of semiconductor devices using processes or apparatus not provided for in a single one of the subgroups H01L21/06 - H01L21/326, e.g. sealing of a cap to a base of a container
    • H01L21/56—Encapsulations, e.g. encapsulation layers, coatings
    • H01L21/568—Temporary substrate used as encapsulation process aid
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
    • B01L—CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL LABORATORY APPARATUS FOR GENERAL USE
    • B01L3/00—Containers or dishes for laboratory use, e.g. laboratory glassware; Droppers
    • B01L3/50—Containers for the purpose of retaining a material to be analysed, e.g. test tubes
    • B01L3/502—Containers for the purpose of retaining a material to be analysed, e.g. test tubes with fluid transport, e.g. in multi-compartment structures
    • B01L3/5027—Containers for the purpose of retaining a material to be analysed, e.g. test tubes with fluid transport, e.g. in multi-compartment structures by integrated microfluidic structures, i.e. dimensions of channels and chambers are such that surface tension forces are important, e.g. lab-on-a-chip
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2224/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies and methods related thereto as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2224/01—Means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected, e.g. chip-to-package, die-attach, "first-level" interconnects; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L2224/42—Wire connectors; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L2224/44—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors prior to the connecting process
    • H01L2224/45—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors prior to the connecting process of an individual wire connector
    • H01L2224/45001—Core members of the connector
    • H01L2224/45099—Material
    • H01L2224/451—Material with a principal constituent of the material being a metal or a metalloid, e.g. boron (B), silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), arsenic (As), antimony (Sb), tellurium (Te) and polonium (Po), and alloys thereof
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2224/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies and methods related thereto as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2224/01—Means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected, e.g. chip-to-package, die-attach, "first-level" interconnects; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L2224/42—Wire connectors; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L2224/47—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors after the connecting process
    • H01L2224/48—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors after the connecting process of an individual wire connector
    • H01L2224/4805—Shape
    • H01L2224/4809—Loop shape
    • H01L2224/48091—Arched
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2224/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies and methods related thereto as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2224/80—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected
    • H01L2224/85—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected using a wire connector
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L24/00—Arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies; Methods or apparatus related thereto
    • H01L24/01—Means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected, e.g. chip-to-package, die-attach, "first-level" interconnects; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L24/42—Wire connectors; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L24/44—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors prior to the connecting process
    • H01L24/45—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors prior to the connecting process of an individual wire connector
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L24/00—Arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies; Methods or apparatus related thereto
    • H01L24/01—Means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected, e.g. chip-to-package, die-attach, "first-level" interconnects; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L24/42—Wire connectors; Manufacturing methods related thereto
    • H01L24/47—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors after the connecting process
    • H01L24/48—Structure, shape, material or disposition of the wire connectors after the connecting process of an individual wire connector
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L24/00—Arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies; Methods or apparatus related thereto
    • H01L24/80—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected
    • H01L24/82—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected by forming build-up interconnects at chip-level, e.g. for high density interconnects [HDI]
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L24/00—Arrangements for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies; Methods or apparatus related thereto
    • H01L24/80—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected
    • H01L24/85—Methods for connecting semiconductor or other solid state bodies using means for bonding being attached to, or being formed on, the surface to be connected using a wire connector
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2924/0001—Technical content checked by a classifier
    • H01L2924/00014—Technical content checked by a classifier the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed without further technical details
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2924/095—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00 with a principal constituent of the material being a combination of two or more materials provided in the groups H01L2924/013 - H01L2924/0715
    • H01L2924/097—Glass-ceramics, e.g. devitrified glass
    • H01L2924/09701—Low temperature co-fired ceramic [LTCC]
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2924/10—Details of semiconductor or other solid state devices to be connected
    • H01L2924/11—Device type
    • H01L2924/14—Integrated circuits
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2924/15—Details of package parts other than the semiconductor or other solid state devices to be connected
    • H01L2924/151—Die mounting substrate
    • H01L2924/1515—Shape
    • H01L2924/15153—Shape the die mounting substrate comprising a recess for hosting the device
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L2924/00—Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
    • H01L2924/15—Details of package parts other than the semiconductor or other solid state devices to be connected
    • H01L2924/151—Die mounting substrate
    • H01L2924/15165—Monolayer substrate

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a microelectronic sensor device and a method for the production of such a device, wherein said device comprises an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip with a sensitive side.
  • IC Integrated Circuit
  • the US 7 033 862 B2 discloses a method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device in which an auxiliary material is attached to the bottom side of a carrier and a semiconductor element is fixed in a hole of the carrier with a "medium material" and a glue. The auxiliary material and the medium material are then removed, and the top sides of the semiconductor element and the carrier are electrically connected.
  • a clear disadvantage of this method is the difficulty to align the surface of the semiconductor element with the surface of the carrier in a common plane.
  • the method according to the present invention serves for the production of a microelectronic sensor device and comprises the following steps: a) Preparing a (substantially flat or planar) interconnect carrier with at least one insertion hole in it.
  • the interconnect carrier may be made from the same material as the carriers of printed circuit boards, for example plastic, glass fiber reinforced epoxy (like FR4 glass fiber epoxy laminates), ceramic (Al 2 O or Low Temperature Cofired Ceramic LTCC) and/or glass.
  • the thickness of the interconnect carrier will typically range from 100 ⁇ m to 5 mm depending on the particular application the microelectronic sensor device is intended for.
  • the removable layer may for example be a flexible single sided adhesive tape.
  • the "sensitive side" of the chip comprises by definition a sensitive region through which some physical interaction between the IC chip and its environment may take place, for example the sensing of an electrical or magnetic field. To allow for such interactions, entities to be sensed (e.g.
  • d) Filling the rest of the insertion hole that is not occupied by the IC chip at least partially with an underfill material, for example a glue, chipcoat 8462-21 (NAMICS, Niigata City, Japan) and/or Dexter FP0090. With the help of the underfill material, the IC chip is fixed in the insertion hole of the interconnect carrier. e) Removing the removable layer from the bottom side of the interconnect carrier, thus providing free access to the sensitive side of the IC chip in the insertion hole.
  • an underfill material for example a glue, chipcoat 8462-21 (NAMICS, Niigata City, Japan) and/or Dexter FP0090.
  • the described method has the advantage that the sensitive side of the IC chip is disposed with high accuracy in a common plane with the bottom side of the interconnect carrier. This is particularly favorable for manipulations of sample fluids in small capillary channels, where every roughness or step in the geometry of the channel should be avoided.
  • the present invention solves the alignment of carrier and semiconductor element in a common plane such that fluid can flow over the carrier and semiconductor element without any obstruction.
  • the well known and highly efficient technique of wire-bonding can be used to contact the chip as the bond-pads on the chip are readily accessible in this design.
  • the electrical connection of the bond-pads to the interconnect carrier may particularly be done by "wire-bonding". This term refers to the process of contacting integrated circuits with bondwires that is well known to a person skilled in the art (described for example in Ivy Wei Qin, “Wire Bonding tutorial”, Advanced Packaging Magazine (July 2005); further literature can be found at http://www.kns.com).
  • ridges i.e. upstanding crests
  • a structured element with (micro-) fluidic channels that is attached to said ridges.
  • the ridges preferably line up to a closed contour such that the space between the interconnect carrier resp. IC chip and the structured element is completely sealed to the outside.
  • the structured element comprises fluidic channels through which a suitable medium, e.g. a gas or liquid to be examined, can be transported to and away from the sensitive region of the IC chip.
  • the ridges may initially be attached to (or be a part of) the combination IC chip/interconnect carrier or to the structured element.
  • the ridges are formed by double sided tape that is applied after mounting the semiconductor element in the carrier.
  • the bondwires that connect the bond-pads of the IC chip with the interconnect carrier are encapsulated in an insulating material, for example a glue like chipcoat 8462-21 (NAMICS) and/or Dexter FP0090. This insulating material protects the bondwires from electrical or mechanical interferences that might occur during the application of the microelectronic sensor device.
  • the insulating material further provides additional mechanical strength and stability for the whole design.
  • the invention further relates to a microelectronic sensor device which comprises the following components: a) A (preferably flat) interconnect carrier with an insertion hole and one side that is called "bottom side". b) An IC chip that is disposed in the insertion hole, with a sensitive side of the chip being exposed in the plane of the bottom side of the interconnect carrier. c) An underfill material filling the rest of the insertion hole. d) Electrical connections (e.g. bondwires) connecting bond-pads on the IC chip to the interconnect carrier.
  • the microelectronic sensor device can especially be produced by a method of the kind described above. Reference is therefore made to the preceding description of the method for more information on the details, advantages, and improvements of said microelectronic sensor device.
  • the microelectronic sensor device may particularly further comprise a structured element with fluidic channels forming a chamber above the sensitive side of the IC chip. Thus a sample fluid can be brought into contact with the sensitive side of the chip where it can be sensed or otherwise be manipulated.
  • the sample may for example comprise biological molecules one is interested in that are labeled with e.g. magnetic particles or fluorescent particles, wherein the presence of the labels can be sensed by the IC chip and thus allows a qualitative or quantitative detection of the biological molecules.
  • the structured element is preferably disposed on ridges running on the bottom side of the interconnect carrier or on the sensitive side of the IC chip, particularly ridges that form a closed contour.
  • the bond-pads of the IC chip are preferably disposed along one edge of the sensitive side of the IC chip, i.e. they are not distributed across the whole area of the sensitive side or along different edges of said sensitive side. Moreover, a ridge runs parallel to these bond-pads. This ridge may particularly be a part of the above-mentioned ridges that carry the structured element.
  • the bond-pads can electrically and mechanically be separated from the rest of the sensitive side which typically comprises a sensitive region through which the IC chip can interact with a sample.
  • the microelectronic sensor device further comprises an insulating material that encapsulates the bondwires. Thus the bondwires can be protected and the chip can get additional mechanical strength.
  • the sensitive side of the IC chip may at least partially be coated with capture elements that specifically bind to particular target molecules.
  • the sensitive side can be made selective for certain types of molecules which shall be detected or otherwise selectively be treated in a sample fluid.
  • Figures 1 to 4 show consecutive stages of the production of a microelectronic sensor device according to the present invention
  • Figure 5 show a perspective view of the bottom of the microelectronic sensor device.
  • a wire-bonded interconnect is proposed for integration of an IC chip in a fluidic cartridge.
  • the chip is placed in a hole in an interconnect carrier (up-side down on a tape), and the hole is filled with underfill. This results in a flat surface at the tape-side.
  • the tape is then removed and the chip is wire-bonded to the interconnect carrier (preferably on one side only).
  • the wire-bonding allows small bond-pads on the chip. This means that the chip can remain small and cheap.
  • a fluidics part is glued on top of the interconnect carrier. This causes a nice separation of the fluid channel and the interconnect carrier, e.g. via a ridge in between the bond-pads on one edge of the chip and the other sensing area of the chip. This can be done with any adhesive process (glue, tape etc.).
  • a nice property of the hole-filling procedure is that the top-surface is rather flat thereby minimizing the risk of leakage after the gluing step.
  • An underfill material (second glue) can be applied at the side of the bond-pads for further mechanical strength and for protection of the bonding wires.
  • Figures 1 to 4 illustrate in more detail the above briefly sketched production of a microelectronic sensor device according to the present invention.
  • Figure 1 shows a first stage which starts with the preparation of an interconnect carrier 20, e.g. a flat board from a plastic material like FR4.
  • the interconnect carrier 20 comprises an insertion hole 21 that is prefabricated for example during manufacturing of the interconnect carrier 20 by drilling.
  • the so-called "bottom side" 22 of the interconnect carrier and the insertion hole 21 are covered by a removable layer 30, for example a single sided adhesive tape like 3M Kapton tape with a silicone based glue layer.
  • the Figure further shows that an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip 10 with a sensitive (bottom) side 12 is placed onto the removable layer 30 in the insertion hole 21. Along one edge of the sensitive side 12, bond-pads 11 are disposed that are needed for electrically contacting the circuits in the IC chip 10.
  • the electronic design of the IC chip 10 may vary in a broad range according to the particular application the whole device is intended for.
  • the IC chip 10 may for example comprise circuitry for detecting the presence of labels, e.g. magnetic particles, in a sample fluid that is brought into contact with the sensitive side 12 (or, more precisely, a sensitive sub-region on the sensitive side).
  • Figure 2 shows the aforementioned IC chip 10 in place in the plane of the bottom side 22 of the interconnect carrier 20.
  • an underfill material 40 for example a glue like NAMICS chipcoat 8462-21.
  • the IC chip 10 is firmly embedded in the insertion hole 21 and fixed to the interconnect carrier 20, and the combination of chip and interconnect carrier favorably has a very flat bottom surface.
  • the removable layer 30 is removed from the bottom surface.
  • bondwires 14 have been added to the device by the well- known technique of bond- wiring. The bondwires 14 electrically connect the bond- pads 11 on the IC chip 10 with contacts (not shown) on the interconnect carrier 20. Wire-bonding is an industrial process and is therefore cheap and optimally suited for mass production.
  • capture molecules 13 may optionally be applied to the sensitive side 12, particularly to the sensitive region of the IC chip 10.
  • the capture molecules 13 can specifically bind to target (bio-)molecules of interest.
  • a planar lithography step may be carried out to form the metal wires for connecting the semiconductor element.
  • a metal layer is deposited either homogeneously over the whole surface or via a mask.
  • a second step of removing the metal layer is needed to form the wire pattern needed to electrically connect the IC chip 10. This can be an etching step that stops at the carrier, IC and fill material.
  • Figure 4 shows the final stage of the production method, in which a closed contour of beads or ridges 52 has been applied to the bottom side 22 of the combined interconnect carrier 20 and IC chip 10.
  • ridges may for example be made from a glue like SU-8 or BCB (benzo-cyclo-buthene).
  • a part of the ridges 52 runs across the sensitive side 12 of the IC chip 10, particularly parallel to the edge where the bond-pads 11 are located.
  • a structured element 50 is placed on the ridges 52 before they are cured, thus attaching it firmly in a liquid-tight manner to the combination of interconnect carrier and IC chip.
  • the structured element 50 may for example be an injection molded plastic component comprising microfluidic channels 51 through which a sample fluid can be applied to the accessible parts of the sensitive side 12 of the IC chip 10.
  • the Figure shows that the bondwires 14 have been embedded in an underfill material 60, for example a further glue like NAMICS chipcoat 8462-21.
  • This underfill material 60 adds mechanical strength to the design, particularly to the attachment of the structured element 50, and protects the bondwires from damage or electrical interference.
  • Figure 5 shows a perspective view onto the bottom side of the combination of IC chip 10 and interconnect carrier 20 after wire bonding, i.e. between the stages of Figures 3 and 4.
  • a process comprises at least one of the following steps: underfilling a hole in an interconnect carrier leading to a flat surface; electrically connecting a chip to the interconnect carrier (preferably on one side only, via wire-bonding or other connection methods); separating the fluidic channel from the interconnect by gluing a ridge onto the carrier-chip combination; protection of the bond- wires (or other electrical connections) by an additional underfill material on the bond-pad side of the chip.

Abstract

The invention relates to a microelectronic sensor device and to a method for the production of such a device comprising the following steps: placing an IC chip (10) in an insertion hole (21) of an interconnect carrier (20), wherein a sensitive side (12) of the chip contacts a removable layer (30) that is attached to the bottom side (22) of the carrier (20); filling the insertion hole (21) with an underfill material (40) and removing the removable layer (30); electrically connecting (via wire bonding or any other method) bond-pads (11) on the chip (10); placing a structured element (50) with fluidic channels (51) on ridges (52) that are disposed on the bottom side of the interconnect carrier (20) and/or the chip (10); encapsulating the bondwires (14) in an insulating material (60).

Description

A METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION OF A MICROELECTRONIC SENSOR DEVICE
The invention relates to a microelectronic sensor device and a method for the production of such a device, wherein said device comprises an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip with a sensitive side.
The US 7 033 862 B2 discloses a method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device in which an auxiliary material is attached to the bottom side of a carrier and a semiconductor element is fixed in a hole of the carrier with a "medium material" and a glue. The auxiliary material and the medium material are then removed, and the top sides of the semiconductor element and the carrier are electrically connected. For some applications a clear disadvantage of this method is the difficulty to align the surface of the semiconductor element with the surface of the carrier in a common plane.
Based on this situation it was an object of the present invention to provide an alternative microelectronic sensor device comprising an IC chip and an interconnect carrier, preferably a device that can readily be produced and that is suited for the manipulation of sample fluids. This object is achieved by a method according to claim 1 and a microelectronic sensor device according to claim 6. Preferred embodiments are disclosed in the dependent claims.
The method according to the present invention serves for the production of a microelectronic sensor device and comprises the following steps: a) Preparing a (substantially flat or planar) interconnect carrier with at least one insertion hole in it. The interconnect carrier may be made from the same material as the carriers of printed circuit boards, for example plastic, glass fiber reinforced epoxy (like FR4 glass fiber epoxy laminates), ceramic (Al2O or Low Temperature Cofired Ceramic LTCC) and/or glass. The thickness of the interconnect carrier will typically range from 100 μm to 5 mm depending on the particular application the microelectronic sensor device is intended for. b) Covering the insertion hole from one side of the interconnect carrier, which will for purposes of reference be called "bottom side" in the following, with a removable layer. The removable layer may for example be a flexible single sided adhesive tape. c) Placing an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip in the insertion hole, wherein a sensitive side of the chip is aligned with the bottom side of the interconnect carrier and contacts the removable layer that is present there. The "sensitive side" of the chip comprises by definition a sensitive region through which some physical interaction between the IC chip and its environment may take place, for example the sensing of an electrical or magnetic field. To allow for such interactions, entities to be sensed (e.g. magnetic particles serving as labels for bio molecules of interest) should be able to come into contact with the sensitive region in the final configuration of the microelectronic sensor device. d) Filling the rest of the insertion hole that is not occupied by the IC chip at least partially with an underfill material, for example a glue, chipcoat 8462-21 (NAMICS, Niigata City, Japan) and/or Dexter FP0090. With the help of the underfill material, the IC chip is fixed in the insertion hole of the interconnect carrier. e) Removing the removable layer from the bottom side of the interconnect carrier, thus providing free access to the sensitive side of the IC chip in the insertion hole. f) Electrically connecting bond-pads on the sensitive side of the IC chip to the interconnect carrier. The described method has the advantage that the sensitive side of the IC chip is disposed with high accuracy in a common plane with the bottom side of the interconnect carrier. This is particularly favorable for manipulations of sample fluids in small capillary channels, where every roughness or step in the geometry of the channel should be avoided. The present invention solves the alignment of carrier and semiconductor element in a common plane such that fluid can flow over the carrier and semiconductor element without any obstruction. Moreover, the well known and highly efficient technique of wire-bonding can be used to contact the chip as the bond-pads on the chip are readily accessible in this design.
The electrical connection of the bond-pads to the interconnect carrier may particularly be done by "wire-bonding". This term refers to the process of contacting integrated circuits with bondwires that is well known to a person skilled in the art (described for example in Ivy Wei Qin, "Wire Bonding Tutorial", Advanced Packaging Magazine (July 2005); further literature can be found at http://www.kns.com).
In a further development of the method, ridges (i.e. upstanding crests) are disposed between (i) the sensitive side of the IC chip and/or the bottom side of the interconnect carrier and (ii) a structured element with (micro-) fluidic channels that is attached to said ridges. The ridges preferably line up to a closed contour such that the space between the interconnect carrier resp. IC chip and the structured element is completely sealed to the outside. For this it is a very helpful that the bottom of the interconnect carrier/IC chip is very planar due to the particular production method with a removable layer. The structured element comprises fluidic channels through which a suitable medium, e.g. a gas or liquid to be examined, can be transported to and away from the sensitive region of the IC chip. The ridges may initially be attached to (or be a part of) the combination IC chip/interconnect carrier or to the structured element. In a preferred embodiment the ridges are formed by double sided tape that is applied after mounting the semiconductor element in the carrier. According to another embodiment of the method, the bondwires that connect the bond-pads of the IC chip with the interconnect carrier are encapsulated in an insulating material, for example a glue like chipcoat 8462-21 (NAMICS) and/or Dexter FP0090. This insulating material protects the bondwires from electrical or mechanical interferences that might occur during the application of the microelectronic sensor device. In connection with a structured element of the aforementioned kind, the insulating material further provides additional mechanical strength and stability for the whole design. The invention further relates to a microelectronic sensor device which comprises the following components: a) A (preferably flat) interconnect carrier with an insertion hole and one side that is called "bottom side". b) An IC chip that is disposed in the insertion hole, with a sensitive side of the chip being exposed in the plane of the bottom side of the interconnect carrier. c) An underfill material filling the rest of the insertion hole. d) Electrical connections (e.g. bondwires) connecting bond-pads on the IC chip to the interconnect carrier.
The microelectronic sensor device can especially be produced by a method of the kind described above. Reference is therefore made to the preceding description of the method for more information on the details, advantages, and improvements of said microelectronic sensor device. The microelectronic sensor device may particularly further comprise a structured element with fluidic channels forming a chamber above the sensitive side of the IC chip. Thus a sample fluid can be brought into contact with the sensitive side of the chip where it can be sensed or otherwise be manipulated. The sample may for example comprise biological molecules one is interested in that are labeled with e.g. magnetic particles or fluorescent particles, wherein the presence of the labels can be sensed by the IC chip and thus allows a qualitative or quantitative detection of the biological molecules.
In the aforementioned case, the structured element is preferably disposed on ridges running on the bottom side of the interconnect carrier or on the sensitive side of the IC chip, particularly ridges that form a closed contour. Thus a liquid-tight junction between the interconnect carrier/IC chip and a structured element of nearly arbitrary design can be achieved.
The bond-pads of the IC chip are preferably disposed along one edge of the sensitive side of the IC chip, i.e. they are not distributed across the whole area of the sensitive side or along different edges of said sensitive side. Moreover, a ridge runs parallel to these bond-pads. This ridge may particularly be a part of the above-mentioned ridges that carry the structured element. By locating the bond-pads all along a single edge of the IC chip and by placing a ridge between this edge and the residual area of the sensitive side, the bond-pads can electrically and mechanically be separated from the rest of the sensitive side which typically comprises a sensitive region through which the IC chip can interact with a sample. In another embodiment, the microelectronic sensor device further comprises an insulating material that encapsulates the bondwires. Thus the bondwires can be protected and the chip can get additional mechanical strength.
The sensitive side of the IC chip may at least partially be coated with capture elements that specifically bind to particular target molecules. Thus the sensitive side can be made selective for certain types of molecules which shall be detected or otherwise selectively be treated in a sample fluid.
These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiment(s) described hereinafter. These embodiments will be described by way of example with the help of the accompanying drawings in which:
Figures 1 to 4 show consecutive stages of the production of a microelectronic sensor device according to the present invention; Figure 5 show a perspective view of the bottom of the microelectronic sensor device.
Like reference numbers or numbers in the Figures refer to identical or similar components.
According to the present invention, a wire-bonded interconnect is proposed for integration of an IC chip in a fluidic cartridge. The chip is placed in a hole in an interconnect carrier (up-side down on a tape), and the hole is filled with underfill. This results in a flat surface at the tape-side. The tape is then removed and the chip is wire-bonded to the interconnect carrier (preferably on one side only).
The wire-bonding allows small bond-pads on the chip. This means that the chip can remain small and cheap. A fluidics part is glued on top of the interconnect carrier. This causes a nice separation of the fluid channel and the interconnect carrier, e.g. via a ridge in between the bond-pads on one edge of the chip and the other sensing area of the chip. This can be done with any adhesive process (glue, tape etc.). A nice property of the hole-filling procedure is that the top-surface is rather flat thereby minimizing the risk of leakage after the gluing step. An underfill material (second glue) can be applied at the side of the bond-pads for further mechanical strength and for protection of the bonding wires.
Figures 1 to 4 illustrate in more detail the above briefly sketched production of a microelectronic sensor device according to the present invention. Figure 1 shows a first stage which starts with the preparation of an interconnect carrier 20, e.g. a flat board from a plastic material like FR4. The interconnect carrier 20 comprises an insertion hole 21 that is prefabricated for example during manufacturing of the interconnect carrier 20 by drilling. The so-called "bottom side" 22 of the interconnect carrier and the insertion hole 21 are covered by a removable layer 30, for example a single sided adhesive tape like 3M Kapton tape with a silicone based glue layer.
The Figure further shows that an Integrated Circuit (IC) chip 10 with a sensitive (bottom) side 12 is placed onto the removable layer 30 in the insertion hole 21. Along one edge of the sensitive side 12, bond-pads 11 are disposed that are needed for electrically contacting the circuits in the IC chip 10. The electronic design of the IC chip 10 may vary in a broad range according to the particular application the whole device is intended for. The IC chip 10 may for example comprise circuitry for detecting the presence of labels, e.g. magnetic particles, in a sample fluid that is brought into contact with the sensitive side 12 (or, more precisely, a sensitive sub-region on the sensitive side).
Figure 2 shows the aforementioned IC chip 10 in place in the plane of the bottom side 22 of the interconnect carrier 20. In this stage of the production process, the rest of the insertion hole 21 is filled with an underfill material 40, for example a glue like NAMICS chipcoat 8462-21. In this way the IC chip 10 is firmly embedded in the insertion hole 21 and fixed to the interconnect carrier 20, and the combination of chip and interconnect carrier favorably has a very flat bottom surface. After curing the underfill material 40, the removable layer 30 is removed from the bottom surface. In Figure 3, bondwires 14 have been added to the device by the well- known technique of bond- wiring. The bondwires 14 electrically connect the bond- pads 11 on the IC chip 10 with contacts (not shown) on the interconnect carrier 20. Wire-bonding is an industrial process and is therefore cheap and optimally suited for mass production.
After bond- wiring, capture molecules 13 may optionally be applied to the sensitive side 12, particularly to the sensitive region of the IC chip 10. The capture molecules 13 can specifically bind to target (bio-)molecules of interest.
Alternatively, because of the very flat combination of semiconductor element and carrier a planar lithography step may be carried out to form the metal wires for connecting the semiconductor element. In this method a metal layer is deposited either homogeneously over the whole surface or via a mask. In the first case a second step of removing the metal layer is needed to form the wire pattern needed to electrically connect the IC chip 10. This can be an etching step that stops at the carrier, IC and fill material.
Figure 4 shows the final stage of the production method, in which a closed contour of beads or ridges 52 has been applied to the bottom side 22 of the combined interconnect carrier 20 and IC chip 10. These ridges may for example be made from a glue like SU-8 or BCB (benzo-cyclo-buthene). A part of the ridges 52 runs across the sensitive side 12 of the IC chip 10, particularly parallel to the edge where the bond-pads 11 are located. Moreover, a structured element 50 is placed on the ridges 52 before they are cured, thus attaching it firmly in a liquid-tight manner to the combination of interconnect carrier and IC chip. The structured element 50 may for example be an injection molded plastic component comprising microfluidic channels 51 through which a sample fluid can be applied to the accessible parts of the sensitive side 12 of the IC chip 10.
Moreover, the Figure shows that the bondwires 14 have been embedded in an underfill material 60, for example a further glue like NAMICS chipcoat 8462-21. This underfill material 60 adds mechanical strength to the design, particularly to the attachment of the structured element 50, and protects the bondwires from damage or electrical interference.
Figure 5 shows a perspective view onto the bottom side of the combination of IC chip 10 and interconnect carrier 20 after wire bonding, i.e. between the stages of Figures 3 and 4.
In summary, a process was described that comprises at least one of the following steps: underfilling a hole in an interconnect carrier leading to a flat surface; electrically connecting a chip to the interconnect carrier (preferably on one side only, via wire-bonding or other connection methods); separating the fluidic channel from the interconnect by gluing a ridge onto the carrier-chip combination; protection of the bond- wires (or other electrical connections) by an additional underfill material on the bond-pad side of the chip. Finally it is pointed out that in the present application the term
"comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, that "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality, and that a single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several means. The invention resides in each and every novel characteristic feature and each and every combination of characteristic features. Moreover, reference signs in the claims shall not be construed as limiting their scope.

Claims

CLAIMS:
1. A method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device, comprising: a) preparing an insertion hole (21) in an interconnect carrier (20); b) covering the insertion hole (21) on a "bottom side" of the interconnect carrier (20) with a removable layer (30); c) placing an IC chip (10) in the insertion hole (21) with a sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) contacting the removable layer (30); d) filling the rest of the insertion hole (21) with an underfill material (40); e) removing the removable layer (30); f) electrically connecting bond-pads (11) at the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) to the interconnect carrier (20).
2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the electrical connections are made by bond- wiring.
3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that a structured element (50) with fluidic channels (51) is attached with ridges (52) being located between it and the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) and/or the bottom side (22) of the interconnect carrier (20).
4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the electrical connections (14) are encapsulated in an insulating material (60).
5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) is at least partially coated with capture elements (13) that specifically bind to particular substances.
6. A microelectronic sensor device, comprising: a) an interconnect carrier (20) with an insertion hole (21); b) an IC chip (10) that is disposed in the insertion hole (21) with a sensitive side (12) of the chip (10) lying exposed in the plane of a "bottom side" (22) of the interconnect carrier (20); c) an underfill material (40) filling the rest of the insertion hole (21); d) electrical connections, particularly bondwires (14), connecting bond-pads (11) on the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) to the interconnect carrier (20).
7. The microelectronic sensor device according to claim 6, characterized in that it further comprises a structured element (50) with fluidic channels (51) disposed above the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10).
8. The microelectronic sensor device according to claim 7, characterized in that the structured element (50) is disposed on ridges (52) disposed on the bottom side (22) of the interconnect carrier (20) and/or the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10).
9. The microelectronic sensor device according to claim 8, characterized in that the bond-pads (11) are disposed along one edge of the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10), and that a ridge (52) runs parallel to these bond-pads.
10. The microelectronic sensor device according to claim 6, characterized in that it further comprises an insulating material (60) encapsulating the electrical connections (14).
11. The microelectronic sensor device according to claim 6, characterized in that the sensitive side (12) of the IC chip (10) is at least partially coated with capture elements (13) that specifically bind to particular substances.
PCT/IB2008/052472 2007-06-27 2008-06-23 A method for the production of a microelectronic sensor device WO2009001280A2 (en)

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3570115A (en) * 1968-05-06 1971-03-16 Honeywell Inc Method for mounting electronic chips
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EP1003035A2 (en) * 1998-11-17 2000-05-24 Micronas Intermetall GmbH Measuring device
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