Method for forming an electrical connection for an integrated circuit

Abstract: A method of forming solder stops (16,26) on a thick film, comprising a conductive metal and an inorganic oxide, including the step of directing a laser beam onto the film to form a surface consisting essentially of fused inorganic oxides which acts as a solder stop (16,26).

Description: This invention relates to a method of forming an electrical connection to flexible solder bumps of an integrated circuit chip. Electrical interconnections are required for electrically connecting an integrated circuit chip to an electrical circuit and a supporting substrate. Typically, the integrated circuit has small solder balls or "bumps" attached to those regions where electrical contact will be made. The integrated circuit is in position such that the bumps contact the electrical circuit on a supporting substrate in the appropriate regions. In addition to the conventional thick and thin film technologies wherein an electrical circuit is printed or deposited on the surface of a substrate so as to form a patterned circuitry, many methods are known for forming the electrical interconnections between an integrated circuit and the electrical circuit on a supporting substrate. Regardless of the particular soldering method used for attaching the chip to a supporting substrate, for enhanced reliability it is desirable to control the amount of solderable surface area on each of the integrated circuit contacts on the substrate. If the solderable surface area of the contact, as defined by the conductor area enclosed by a surrounding dielectric, is too large, the mass of solder which forms the bump has a propensity to shear off during exposure to the widely varying temperature ranges of operation. Therefore, the actual contact area between the individual solder bump on the integrated circuit and the contact region of the conductor must be optimally minimised. Generally, the amount of contact area should be controlled and minimised by providing a conductor having a predetermined, optimal width in the contact region. Further, a dielectric region should be provided, referred to as a solder dam or solder stop, on the conductor in the contact area to prevent the solder from wicking or flowing down the conductor. Flexible solder bumps serve a variety of functions. Generally, flexible solder bumps serve: as an electric connection between the integrated circuit chip and the conductors on the circuit board; to keep the integrated circuit chip elevated above the board so that the solder flux residue may be washed off of the circuit board and away from the integrated circuit chip, where the flux can cause damage; to dissipate heat away from the integrated circuit chip; and to accommodate differences in thermal expansion between the integrated circuit chip and the circuit board during operation of the device. Solder bumps when uniform in dimension allow for an overall higher current density through the device. The flexible solder bumps may be attached to the chip by a variety of methods including plating or by using solder balls. Prior to the present invention, solder dams or solder stops consisted of thick film of dielectric films deposited over the conductor layer, wherein a trough is provided within the dielectric layers. Within the trough no dielectric material is present. The solder is retained in the trough and between the stops to connect the integrated circuit and the conductors. An example of this arrangement is disclosed in US-A-4859808. JP-A-2228050 also discloses a method of forming solder dams. Numerous disadvantages exist with respect to prior art solder dam or stop designs. The alignment between the conductor layer and the solder dam layer must be maintained quite strictly or substantial misalignment results between the two layers. When there is even slight misalignment between layers, the conductors do not align with the solder dam or conductive bumps on the integrated circuit. Therefore, the electrical connection may be formed only partially or not at all, resulting in diminished integrity of the electrical circuit as a whole. Further, such designs require multiple printing and firing steps. First, the conductive lead must be printed and then fired. Second, the solder dam must be printed over the fired conductive lead and the device fired again. Moreover, the use of a second printed layer to provide a solder dam or stop cannot be printed with great accuracy and often has a width ranging from about 0.25 mm to around 0.5 mm (around 0.010″ to around 0.020″). The present invention seeks to provide an improved method. A method in accordance with the present invention is characterised by the features specified in claim 1. The invention can provide an electrical interconnection lead prepared from a single printing and firing, and a solder stop with great precision and minimal width. In a preferred embodiment, the electrically conductive lead is adhered to a substrate and has a top surface portion consisting essentially of fused inorganic oxide. The fused inorganic oxide serves as a solder stop. The conductive lead is formed from a single printing of a composition containing a conductive material and an inorganic oxide. The fused inorganic oxide on the top surface of the conductive lead is formed by energizing a selective portion of the printed composition so that essentially only the fused inorganic oxide is formed at the top surface of the conductive lead in the area where the energy is imparted. In a preferred embodiment, a composition including a conductive material and an inorganic oxide is printed on a substrate to form a printed pattern. A portion of the printed pattern is selectively energized so that the top surface of the portion of the printed pattern forms essentially fused inorganic oxide which acts as a solder stop. The printed pattern so energized is then sintered to form an electrically conductive lead firmly adhered to the substrate. The printed pattern may be energized by directing a laser beam thereon or by other means suitable for forming fused inorganic oxide at the surface of a selected portion of the printed pattern. The present invention can provide advantages over the prior art. A conductive lead having a solder stop thereon can be formed from a single printing and firing of an electrical lead pattern. The solder stop formed by energizing a printed pattern of a composition including a conductive material and inorganic oxides can result in a conductive lead in which the top surface of the solder stop is substantially the same distance from the substrate as is the rest of the conductive lead. When the solder stop is formed by directing a laser beam to a selective portion of the printed pattern, it is possible to form the solder stop with great accuracy and with minimal width. Further, forming a solder stop with a laser beam can increase the ability to control accurately and limit the flow of solder from the solder bump. The lead density can also be increased because the use of laser formed solder stops can allow the use of substantially straight and perpendicular lead patterns to the integrated circuit chip. The need for "L-shaped" lead patterns of the prior art can therefore be eliminated. Further, the use of laser formed solder stops may be performed within less than plus or minus 0.025 mm of the proper location relative to the chip bump pattern. An embodiment of the present invention is described below, by way of illustration only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows prior art conductive lead patterns; Figure 2 is an illustration of an embodiment of lead configuration for a flip chip; Figure 3 shows a prior art electrical lead pattern utilizing L-shaped connector portions; Figure 4 is an illustration of a cross-sectional view of a conductive lead having a prior art type solder stop; Figure 5 is a graph of the amount of conductive material on the surface of a conductor before and after making a solder stop according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 5 magnified 620 times; Figure 7 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 5 magnified 1200 times; Figure 8 is a graph of the amount of conductive material on the surface of a conductor before and after making a solder stop according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 9 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 8 magnified 620 times; Figure 10 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 8 magnified 1200 times; Figure 11 is a cross-sectional view of a conductor having an embodiment of solder stop; Figure 12 is a cross-sectional view of a conductor with an embodiment of solder stop, taken along the longitudinal axis of the conductor. As used herein, the term "printed circuit board" is intended to encompass a support member that may be rigid or flexible, laminated or not, of any suitable composition on which a printed pattern of electrical conductors is provided. The term "printed pattern" is intended to encompass the pattern on a substrate formed by any suitable process, including, but not limited to, silk screen printing, photolithography, evaporation, plating, stenciling, ink wiring, plasma deposition, sputtering, adhesion or thin film or thick film techniques. A printed circuit board having a semi-conductor chip or other electrical module attached thereto shall be denoted as a printed circuit board assembly. It will be convenient generally to discuss the invention with particular reference to a printed circuit board assembly including a semi-conductor chip on the surface mounted or a flip chip type. Such a chip typically has formed thereon an integrated circuit containing a number of electrical contacts (terminals) on one surface. The contacts are typically soldered or otherwise electrically connected to the conductors of the printed circuit board. A printed pattern of a conductive material may be formed on a substrate by any suitable process. Generally when the process is a silk screen printing process, the wet pattern has a thickness ranging from about 0.02 mm (0.0008′′) to about 0.04 mm (0.0015′′). When the printed pattern is allowed to dry, the pattern has a thickness of ranging from about 0.01 mm (0.0004′′) to about 0.03 mm (0.0012′′). When the printed pattern is fired, the pattern has a thickness ranging from about 0.005 mm (0.0002′′) to about 0.02 mm (0.0008″). The pattern may be formed by a variety of suitable compositions which in general comprise a conductive material and an inorganic oxide. Suitable conductive materials include at least one selected from the group consisting of Ag, Pd, Pt, and Cu. Suitable inorganic oxides include at least one selected from the group consisting of lead, ruthenium, cobalt, bismuth, copper and zinc and glass frit containing oxides of silica, aluminium, boron and calcium. Preferably, the composition also includes a solvent, such as terpineol. The composition may also include an organic binder such as ethyl cellulose. The conductive material may comprise from about 10% to about 90%, preferably about 30% to about 90% and most preferably about 75% by weight of the composition. The conductive material is preferably in a powder form. The inorganic oxide may comprise about 3% to about 40%, preferably about 5% to about 20%, and most preferably about 10% by weight of the composition. The solvent may comprise about 1% to about 25% by weight of the composition. The inorganic binder may be about 5% to about 15% by weight of the composition. The solder material may include lead and indium (tin, Ag). A suitable solder material is manufactured by Delco. The above compositions and a method of making a solder stop on a conductive lead are useful in any situation where a component, device or element is to be attached to the conductive lead by means of solder. The method is particularly useful in the assembly of "flip-chip" devices using a "flexible solder bump". Flip-chip mounting is a method developed for attaching active elements to film circuits eliminating the need for separate wire bonding. For example, a semi-conductor device, such as a transistor, diode or integrated circuit, may first be covered with a glass layer, which provides mechanical or environmental protection. Holes may be formed into the glass layer directly over the metallic contact pads of the semi-conductor device. Then, a metallic film may be selectively evaporated over the glass surface to penetrate to the holes and contact the semi-conductor contact pads. The holes may then be filled with ball-shaped solder. The solder balls may be attached to the chip by heating the wafer and causing the solder in the hole to reflow and to make a good electrical mechanical connection. The solder balls would then extend above the glass surface coating the semi-conductor device. The chip may then be turned upside down, and the protruding portion of the solder balls can be utilized to contact conductive layers of a thin film structure. The means for reflowing the solder balls to make the final connection may be similar to that used to attach the balls to the semi-conductor. However, if the solderable surface is too large, the mass of solder which forms the bump becomes too thin due to the flow of solder and has a propensity to shear off during exposure to a wide variety of operating temperatures. Therefore, the flow of solder must be restricted by a solder stop or solder dam. After a wet printed pattern has been applied to a substrate, the dried and fired portion of the fired pattern is selectively energized. One preferred method of energizing this portion is by directing a laser beam onto the portion of the conductive pattern. It is believed that the energizing source causes the inorganic oxides in the fired pattern to rise to the surface and fuse together. Alternatively, the energization of the surface may cause the conductive particles to be vapourized leaving only inorganic oxides at the surface. Whatever the mechanism, the laser beam or energy source is directed onto the fired pattern for a period of time less than that required to cut the pattern through its thickness. The step of energizing a selective portion of the fired pattern, sufficient to form a solder stop after completion of all the process steps, is performed until there is a noticeable colour change in the fired pattern without erosion of the printed pattern or a decrease in the height or thickness of the printed pattern. The term "without erosion of the printed pattern" means that the thickness and electrical conductivity of the runner are not significantly changed by the exposure to the energy source to cause significant increase in resistance. This energizing step of forming a fused layer of inorganic oxide on the top surface of the printed pattern forms a solder stop. A suitable laser for selectively energizing a portion of the printed pattern is available from Lee Laser under the trade name 708T. Such a laser may operate with the following range of equipment settings: Power - 0.5 watt to 3 watt, Q Rate - 10 kHz to 25 kHz, Bite Size - 0.001 mm to 0.005 mm (0.00005′′ to 0.0002′′), Mode - TMOO. The width of the solder stop formed by such a laser ranges from about 0.01 mm (0.0005′′) to about 0.1 mm (0.004′′). Preferably, the solder stop is formed perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the conductive lead. The laser may import an energy ranging from about 0.0005 joule to about 0.100 joule for a conductive lead having a width ranging from about 0.05 mm (0.002′′) to about 6.5 mm (0.25′′). Preferably, the laser beam is directed onto the printed pattern until there is a visual colour change in the printed pattern but no erosion of the conductor or decrease in height of the pattern. After the solder stop has been formed, the height or distance from the substrate of the solder stop and the remainder of the pattern is substantially the same. Typically, the solder stop may be made with a width ranging from about 0.025 mm (0.0010′′) to about 0.076 mm (0.0030′′). The use of a laser to form the solder stop is advantageous because it eliminates the need for a second printing of a dielectric material over the conductive lead as required by the prior art method of making solder stops or solder dams. When a second printing is required for the dielectric material, the operator is not able to see the underlying conductive lead due to the silk screen mass. The use of a laser allows the operator to look directly onto the conductive lead and more specifically locate and accurately produce the solder stop. As shown in Figure 1, the solder stop of the prior art is a dielectric material 100 printed over conductive leads 102 on a substrate 106, in a pattern to surround the area for the solder bump 104 on at least two sides. Figure 2 illustrates an embodiment of lead configuration for a flip-chip. The leads 50 are arranged to accommodate a rectangularly shaped integrated circuit chip with a plurality of leads in spaced apart substantially parallel relationship to each other for an associated side of the chip. The use of laser formed solder stops 52 allows the stops to be positioned at substantially the same location on each lead of an associated side of the chip. This allows for the use of substantially straight leads having longitudinal axes which are substantially perpendicular to the edge of an associated side of the chip. Such an arrangement allows for an increased density of leads along an associated side and the entire chip. As shown in Figure 3, prior art methods of forming solder stops or solder dams sometimes require the use of "L-shaped" conductive patterns 102. This is done to minimize print misalignment between the conductor and solder stop patterns due to print or mask registration tolerances. The use of a laser to form the solder stops eliminates the need for "L-shaped" conductive patterns because the laser can be controlled by optical pattern recognition of the conductor pattern. This allows precise placement of the solder stop area on the conductor pattern without the tolerances associated with screen printing, such as screen stretch and screen or mask alignment to the printed circuit board. Thus, the conductive leads can be positioned with respect to a rectangular shaped integrated circuit such that the contact region and the adjacent region of the conductive leads are substantially straight and are substantially perpendicular to an associated side of the integrated circuit. This allows for an increase density conductive leads along an associated side of a rectangular shaped integrated circuit. As shown in Figure 4, the prior art method of printing a solder dam 112 over a conductive lead 114 results in the top surface 116 of the solder dam being substantially higher than the top surface 118 of the conductive lead. This is a disadvantage because it increases the difficulty of subsequent flux residue cleaning under the chip by restricting the flow of the cleaning agent, and also obscures the view of the solder bumps in any required visual inspection. However, the top surface of the solder stop shown in Figure 12 is at a height or distance from the substrate 22 which is substantially equal to the remainder of the conductive lead. This is advantageous because it enhances the ability to clean flux residue from under the chip, to visually inspect the solder bumps and to flow potting or conformal coating material under the chip in subsequent operations. The following example is illustrative of an embodiment of the present invention. A composition for printing a conductive lead is available from DuPont under the trade names 7484, 7474 and QS 170. These compositions may contain about 10% to about 90% by weight conductive material comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of Ag, Pd, Pt and Cu, about 3% to 40% by weight inorganic oxide comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of lead, ruthenium, cobalt, bismuth, copper and zinc oxides, about 1% to 25% by weight solvent such as terpineol and about 5% to 15% by weight of an organic binder such as ethyl cellulose. This composition is silk screened onto a substrate in a manner known in the art to produce a wet printed pattern. The substrate and printed pattern is fired at about 840°C to about 860°C to form a solid conductive lead adhered to the substrate. A laser may be set at the setting described above. The laser emitter is placed a distance of approximately 150 mm (6′′) away from the fired pattern and a beam is directed onto the fired pattern a distance of 0.1 mm (0.004′′) to 0.25 mm (0.010′′) from the end of the fired pattern. The beam is directed onto the fired pattern for approximately 0.003 seconds or until there is a noticeable colour or surface structural change in the fired printed pattern without erosion of the pattern or a decrease in the height of the fired pattern. The solder stop formed by the laser beam has a width of approximately 0.075 mm (0.003′′). A semi-conductor device having solder balls secured to conductive pads in a manner described above may be aligned with the solid conductive lead on the substrate so that the solder balls contact the contact region of the conductive lead. The solder balls may be caused to reflow by heating the substrate, conductive lead and semi-conductor device in an IR furnace at a temperature of approximately 240°C for approximately 25 seconds. The solder may be ramp cooled in the furnace to form an electrical interconnection lead pattern and integrated circuit chip combination. Figure 5 is a graph showing the relative amount of individual elements of conductive material and oxides on the surface of a conductor before and after making a solder stop according to the above embodiment. The relative amounts of individual elements before and after making the solder stop was determined by the electron emissions (counts) of a scanning electron microscope. The dotted line represents the amount of conductive material and oxides at the solder stop formed by a laser. The solid line represents the amount of conductive material and oxides on the conductive lead which was not laser flashed (clean area). The conductor was prepared from a DuPont QS 170 composition which is believed to have included Ag at a weight percent of 75% as a conductive material and 3% to 10% weight percent as glass frits and inorganic oxides. The solder stop was formed by directing the above described laser set at Power - 1.5 watts, Q Rate - 12 kHz, Bite Size - 0.0013 mm (0.00005′′), Mode - TMOO, onto the fired conductor pattern for a period of about 0.006 seconds. As illustrated in Figure 5, the relative amount of oxides is much greater at the solder stop than the area not laser flashed. Figure 6 is a view of a photograph of the conductor having a solder stop illustrated in Figure 5 and magnified 620 times. The portion of the photograph which is relatively smooth compared to the rest of the photograph is the solder stop. Figure 7 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 5 magnified 1200 times. Figure 8 is a graph showing the relative amount of conductive material and oxides on the surface of a conductor before and after making a solder stop according to an embodiment of the present invention. The relative amounts of individual elements before and after making the solder stop was determined by electron emissions (counts) of a scanning electron microscope. The dotted line represents the amount of conductive material and oxides at the solder stop formed by a laser. The solid line represents the amount of conductive material and oxides on the conductive lead which was not laser flashed (clean area). The conductor was prepared from a DuPont 7484 composition which is believed to include Ag at a 30% to 60% weight percent as a conductive material and 10% to 35% weight percent as glass frits and inorganic oxides. The solder stop was formed by directing the above described laser set at Power - 1.5 watts, Q Rate - 20 kHz, Bite Size 0.0013 mm (0.00005′′), Mode - TMOO, onto the fired conductor pattern for a period of about 0.004 seconds. As illustrated in Figure 8, the relative amount of oxides is much greater at the solder stop than the area not laser flashed. Figure 9 is a view of a photograph of the conductor having a solder stop illustrated in Figure 8, magnified 620 times. The portion of the photograph which is relatively smooth compared to the rest of the photograph is the solder stop. Figure 10 is a view of a photograph of the conductor of Figure 8, magnified 1200 times. Figure 11 is a cross-sectional view of an electrically conductive lead having a solder stop according to an embodiment of the present invention. The electrically conductive lead 10 has a bottom portion 12 comprising conductive material and inorganic oxides which is adhered to a circuit board 14. Above the bottom portion 12 of the electrically conductive lead is a solder stop 16. The character of the solder stop 16 is such that molten solder will not flow onto it. The solder stop 16 may consist essentially of inorganic oxides. The solder stop 16 does not extend throughout the thickness of the lead 10. Preferably, the solder stop 16 extends about 0.00013 mm (0.000005′′) to about 0.0013 mm (0.00005′′) from the top surface 18 of the electrically conductive lead to towards the circuit board 14 for a lead 10 which is approximately 0.0064 mm (0.00025′′) thick. Figure 12 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of solder stop taken along the longitudinal axis of the lead 20. The conductive lead 20 is adhered to a circuit board 22 and has a first portion 24 comprising a conductive material and an inorganic oxide; and a second portion 26 which acts as a solder stop. The first and second portions 24, 26 each have top surfaces 28 and 30, respectively, which are substantially the same distance from the circuit board top surface 32. Preferably, the solder stop 26 consists essentially of inorganic oxides. The solder stop 26 does not extend through the thickness of the conductive lead 20 but only a distance sufficient such that solder will not flow over the solder stop 26.

Claims: A method of forming an electrical connection to flexible solder bumps of an integrated circuit chip, comprising the steps of providing a composition comprising a conductive material and an inorganic oxide; printing the composition onto a substrate in a predetermined pattern; sintering the printed composition to form conductive leads (50); selectively directing wave energy onto a portion of the sintered composition to form solder stops (52) on the conductive leads; aligning the integrated circuit chip so that the solder bumps thereof contact portions of the conductive leads adjacent to the solder stops; and reflowing and cooling the solder bumps so as to secure the solder bumps to the conductive leads. A method according to claim 1, wherein the portion of the sintered pattern is energised substantially without eroding the thickness of the portion. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the step of energising the portion of the sintered pattern produces a noticeable colour change in the printed pattern substantially without erosion of the pattern and substantially without a decrease in the thickness of the printed pattern. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the step of directing wave energy onto a portion of the sintered composition comprises directing a laser beam onto the portion. A method according to claim 4, comprising the step of imparting energy ranging from substantially 0.0005 Joule to substantially 0.100 Joule onto the portion of the printed pattern. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the step of directing wave energy onto a portion of the sintered composition comprises directing an electron beam onto the pattern. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the conductive material comprises at least one compound selected from the group consisting of silver, palladium, platinum, gold, and copper. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the inorganic oxide comprises at least one compound selected from the group consisting of lead, ruthenium, cobalt, bismuth, copper, and zinc oxides. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the inorganic oxide is provided in an amount ranging from substantially 3% to substantially 40% by weight of the composition.

Inventors: BLANTON JAMES ARTHUR, COAPMAN CHRISTINE REDDER, ISENBERG JOHN KARL, MYERS BRUCE ALAN, BLANTON, JAMES ARTHUR, COAPMAN, CHRISTINE REDDER, ISENBERG, JOHN KARL, MYERS, BRUCE ALAN
Applicants: DELCO ELECTRONICS CORP, DELCO ELECTRONICS CORPORATION
Application year: 1992
Main classification: H01L21
IPC codes: H01L23, H05K3, H05K1, H01L21