Patent ID: 7714418

Claim:
A leadframe panel that defines at least one two-dimensional array of device areas arranged in rows and columns, the leadframe panel comprising: a plurality of tie bars, each tie bar extending between an associated pair of adjacent columns of device areas and carrying a multiplicity of leadframe components, including a plurality of contacts for each adjacent device area in the associated pair of adjacent columns; and a plurality of contact strings that extend substantially in parallel with the tie bars such that each contact string passes through an associated column of device areas, each contact string including at least one contact for each device area that the contact string passes through, and wherein each column of device areas has at least one associated tie bar and at least one associated contact string, none of the at least one associated tie bar being connected to any of the at least one associated contact string except at the ends of the column, whereby all of the leadframe components in each device area in a column of devices areas are carried only by the at least one contact string or the at least one tie bar associated with the column.