Semiconductor devices and manufacture thereof

Claim 1

Semiconductor apparatus comprising a longitudinally extending flexible tape of electrically insulating organic resinous material having a series of longitudinally spaced central apertures, each of said apertures encompassing metallic contact regions of a respectively adjacent semiconductor pellet in registry therewith, each said aperture being dimensioned to provide a space between its periphery and the peripheral edge of the semiconductor pellet whose contact regions each said aperture encompasses, a plurality of sets of metallic foil leads carried by said tape, said leads of each said set being secured to and arranged on a major face of said tape in a pattern of fingers extending generally outward from a respective adjacent aperture, the inner end portions of said leads of each said set extending inwardly past the periphery of said respective adjacent aperture in cantilevered relation to said tape and terminating in registry with said respective metallic contact regions of said respectively adjacent semiconductor pellet, means joining said inner end portions of said leads of each said set with said respective contact regions of said respectively adjacent semiconductor pellet, said tape having a plurality of sets of elongated slots with said slots of each said set being spaced from each other and arranged generally circumferentially around said apertures, the outer portions of said leads of each said set thereof being encompassed by a corresponding set of said elongated slots whereby said outer portions of said leads are not in contact with or supported by said flexible tape, and severance paths extending between said slots of each said corresponding set thereof for severing each respectively combined set of leads and semiconductor pellet from the remainder of said tape.