Patent Abstract:
A flip chip package includes: a carrier coupled to a die. The carrier includes: at least a via, for coupling the surface of the carrier to electrical traces in the carrier; and at least a capture pad electrically coupled to the via, wherein the capture pad is plated over the via. The die includes: at least a bond pad formed on the surface of the die; and at least a copper column, formed on the bond pad for coupling the die to the capture pad on the carrier, wherein part of the copper column overhangs the via opening.

Full Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation in part of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/612,860, which was filed on Sep. 13, 2012, and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/604,681, filed on Feb. 29, 2012. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Flip chip technology is a method for coupling a chip (die) to a carrier, substrate or circuit board, wherein the die is electrically connected to the carrier without using bond wires. Solder bumps on the die surface disposed over the bond pads are used as bonding means, and the chip is then ‘flipped’ so that it is face down on the carrier. The solder bumps enable electrical coupling to traces in the carrier by means of capture pads and vias. An epoxy covering then ‘under fills’ the structure to absorb the stress. This technique allows for shorter interconnect lengths as well as more area available for routing. 
         [0003]    In conventional technologies, the vias (which couple to electrical traces in the carrier) are filled in with conductive material. The resultant structure is usually not completely flat, such that a dimple is formed on the surface of the conductive material at the opening of the via. The top of the carrier is then plated to form capture pads over each via, where each capture pad is designed to have a similar diameter to the solder bumps on the die. The plating follows the contours of the filled-in via, such that the capture pad also has a dimpled surface, allowing the solder bump to sit in the dimple. 
         [0004]    Newer technologies replace the solder bumps with copper (Cu) pillars/columns having a small solder bump at one end for contacting the capture pad. Please refer to  FIG. 1A , which shows a diagram of a conventional die package  100  using solder bumps  73  to couple to vias  41 , and  FIG. 1B , which shows a conventional die package  150  using copper (Cu) columns  81  to couple to vias  41 . In both diagrams, the same numerals are used to denote the same components. 
         [0005]      FIG. 1A  shows a die package  100 , comprising a die  112 , which has a plurality of bond pads  28  on its surface, each bond pad  28  having a solder bump  73  formed thereon. As shown in the diagram, the die  112  is flipped to couple to a carrier  114  by means of the solder bumps  73 . The carrier  114  has a plurality of capture pads  34  on its surface, each capture pad  34  being formed over a via  41 . The vias  41  couple to electrical traces (not shown) in the carrier  114 . The vias  41  are filled with conductive material, represented by the diagonal lines. 
         [0006]      FIG. 1B  shows a die package  150 , comprising the die  112 , flipped to couple to the carrier  114 . The bond pads  28  have copper columns  81  formed thereon rather than solder bumps, for coupling the die  112  to the carrier  114 . As shown in the diagram, the copper columns  81  have a smaller diameter than the solder bumps  73  in  FIG. 1A . In addition, each copper column  81  has a solder bump  93  formed at its end, the solder bumps  93  being of a similar diameter to the copper columns  81 . The vias  41  are filled in with conductive material, as in  FIG. 1A . The capture pads  54  in  FIG. 1B  are of a smaller diameter than the capture pads  34  in  FIG. 1A , corresponding to the smaller diameter of the copper columns  81 . 
         [0007]    As illustrated in the two diagrams, the capture pads  34 ,  54  are formed to have a similar diameter to the connecting solder bumps  73  and  93 , respectively. When Copper columns  81  are utilized, their smaller diameter as compared to the conventional solder bumps  73  means the capture pads  54  can be formed with a similarly smaller diameter; the use of Copper columns  81  can therefore free up the bonding area. The smaller diameter solder bump  93 , however, has the disadvantage of having poor bonding contact with the plated capture pad  54 ; in particular, due to the presence of the dimple. Increasing the diameter of the Copper columns  81  can improve the bump-dimple contact, but this involves increasing the cap size, which is not desirable, and also negates the increased bonding area advantage. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a flip chip package structure that utilizes copper columns for bonding means, wherein there is good bonding contact between the die and the carrier. This is achieved by providing copper columns wherein part of each copper column overhangs a corresponding via opening, and the part of the copper column that does not overhang the via opening contacts a corresponding capture pad on one side of a corresponding via only, wherein the capture pads are plated to be asymmetrical about via openings in the carrier. 
         [0009]    A flip chip package comprises: a carrier coupled to a die. The carrier comprises: at least a via, for coupling the surface of the carrier to electrical traces in the carrier; and at least a capture pad electrically coupled to the via, wherein the capture pad is plated over the via. The die comprises: at least a bond pad formed on the surface of the die; and at least a copper column, formed on the bond pad for coupling the die to the capture pad on the carrier, wherein part of the copper column overhangs the via opening. 
         [0010]    These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]      FIG. 1A  is a diagram of a conventional flip chip structure where solder bumps disposed on the die couple to capture pads on the carrier. 
           [0012]      FIG. 1B  is a diagram of a conventional flip chip structure using copper columns on the die to couple to capture pads on the carrier. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional diagram of a flip chip structure according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3A  is a top view of a first embodiment of the flip chip structure shown in  FIG. 2 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 3B  is a top view of a second embodiment of the flip chip structure shown in  FIG. 2 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 3C  is a top view of a third embodiment of the flip chip structure shown in  FIG. 2 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0017]    The present invention provides a novel structure for a flip chip package that utilizes copper columns for coupling a die to a carrier, wherein there is good bonding contact between the die and the carrier, as well as greater flexibility of the bonding structure. 
         [0018]    In the following, the diagrams and accompanying descriptions will refer to preferred exemplary embodiments; however, one skilled in the art will be able to perform appropriate modifications after reading the following disclosure. It will be appreciated that any modifications to the proposed design which follow the same inventive concepts as those laid out in the disclosure also fall within the scope of the invention. 
         [0019]    Please refer to  FIG. 2 , which is a cross-sectional diagram of a proposed flip chip structure  200  according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and  FIGS. 3A ,  3 B and  3 C, which are top views of the structure  200  shown in  FIG. 2  corresponding to different respective embodiments. Where elements shown in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 A,  3 B and  3 C have the same structure and function as elements shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B , the same numerals have been used. 
         [0020]    The proposed flip chip package  200  consists of a die  112  coupled to a carrier  114  in the flip chip manner, and coupled by the means of copper columns  230 . Each copper column  230  has a small solder bump  232  on the end for contacting capture pads  251  formed on the surface of the carrier  114 . The carrier  114  also has a number of vias  41  for coupling the capture pads  251  to traces (not shown) in the carrier  114 . 
         [0021]    In  FIG. 2 , part of the copper column  230  (and the solder bump  232  on the end of the copper column  230 ) overhangs the vias  41 . The other part of the copper column  230  (and the solder bump  232  on the end of the column  230 ) is placed on the capture pad  251  so that the copper columns  230  are placed on only one side of their corresponding capture pads  251 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 3A ,  3 B and  3 C. This ensures both the best electrical connectivity and the best mechanical stability. 
         [0022]    In order to ensure the electrical connectivity, three different embodiments are disclosed herein, which are respectively illustrated in  FIGS. 3A ,  3 B and  3 C. As can be seen by comparing these diagrams with  FIG. 2 , the cross-sectional appearance of the copper columns  230  and capture pads  251  is the same, but the top views as illustrated in  FIGS. 3A ,  3 B and  3 C are different from each other. The respective differences will be detailed in the following, with reference to their accompanying diagrams. 
         [0023]    Please refer to  FIG. 3A , which illustrates a top view of the capture pads  251 , vias  41  and solder bumps  232  as formed on the carrier  114  according to a first embodiment. As shown in this embodiment, the capture pads  251  are symmetrical about the vias  41  apart from one rectangular section which extends out to one side of the capture pads  251 . The copper columns  230  and the solder bumps  232  are disposed partly on this rectangular section, with the other part overhanging the vias  41 . 
         [0024]    Please refer to  FIG. 3B , which illustrates a top view of the capture pads  251 , vias  41  and solder bumps  232  as formed on the carrier  114  according to a second embodiment. As shown in this embodiment, the capture pads  251  are asymmetrical about the vias  41 , and the part of the copper columns  230  and solder bumps  232  which contact the capture pads  251  are disposed on the side of the capture pads  251  having the greater area. 
         [0025]    Please refer to  FIG. 3C , which illustrates a top view of the capture pads  251 , vias  41  and solder bumps  232  as formed on the carrier  114  according to a third embodiment. As shown in this embodiment, the capture pads  251  are asymmetrical about the vias  41 , and the part of the copper columns  230  and solder bumps  232  which contact the capture pads  251  are disposed on the side of the capture pads  251  having the greater area, as in the previous embodiment. The difference between the second and third embodiment is that the copper columns  230  and solder bumps  232  are shaped to follow the shape of the capture pads  251 . In  FIG. 3C , solder bumps  232  (and therefore copper columns  230 ) having kidney-shaped or C-shaped cross-sectional areas are formed. 
         [0026]    As detailed above and illustrated in  FIGS. 3A ,  3 B and  3 C, the copper columns  230  will only contact one side of the capture pads  251  about the vias  41 . This structure allows the copper column  230  to take maximum advantage of the capture pad  251  conductivity, and ensures the copper column  230  will have good bonding contact. 
         [0027]    The shape of the capture pad  251  is also not limited to the egg-shaped and ellipse-shaped examples detailed above. In general, it is desirable to have a capture pad shape that does not require a large amount of extra material to be added. As a typical die package will have a plurality of vias (and therefore capture pads) disposed thereon, it is also desirable that the shape of the capture pads allow as many capture pads as possible to be disposed on the carrier surface, to allow greater bonding possibilities. The specific number and individual shape of capture pads can be according to a designer&#39;s requirements. 
         [0028]    As well as freeing up the bonding area of the die package, the third, fourth and fifth embodiments which disclose asymmetrical capture pads and copper columns that follow the shapes of the capture pads have the added advantage of reducing stress in the Extra Low K (ELK) layers. Due to the copper columns being shaped to be asymmetrical, the copper column—capture pad bonds will be more stable than the bonds between the copper columns and the capture pads of the conventional art. In the examples shown in  FIGS. 3C ,  4 A and  4 B, the kidney or C-shaped copper column  230  has less potential for movement about a central point than the conventional copper columns  81 , so there is less potential for ELK layer cracks to occur than in the conventional methods. Therefore, the proposed structure not only improves the electrical connectivity of the die package but also improves its mechanical stability. 
         [0029]    By keeping the copper column very close to the via so that part of the copper column overhangs the via, maximum contact can be ensured, while minimizing the amount of material that needs to be used for the capture pad. If the capture pad is kept below a certain diameter, then more space on the carrier is available for bonding. 
         [0030]    As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the shape of the copper column and corresponding shape of the capture pad are not limited to those examples provided in the disclosure. Any shaped copper column that follows an alternative (non-conventional) shape of a capture pad for bonding purposes falls within the scope of the invention. 
         [0031]    In summary, the disclosure details a flip chip package, wherein copper columns are used to contact capture pads, which in turn are coupled to vias in the carrier that are coupled to circuit traces within the carrier. Part of the copper columns overhang the corresponding vias, and the capture pads may be asymmetrical about a centre of a respective via. In one embodiment, the copper column is shaped to follow the perimeter of the capture pad. This structure not only frees up the amount of bonding space available on a surface of the chip, but also results in greater stability due to less stress being placed on the ELK layers, thereby resulting in a structure with high electrical connectivity and mechanical stability. 
         [0032]    Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 7