Patent US6229221B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
← Back to Patent Explorer
US6229221B1 Expired / Lapsed US ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Integrated circuit device

Assignee: NXP BV
•
Filing: 1999-12-06
•
Granted: 2001-05-08
•
Expires: 2019-12-06
📄 Original PDF 🌐 Google Patents 🔄 Sync Now

Abstract

Abstract An integrated circuit device comprises an active circuit 4 provided in an active circuit area at a surface 5 of a semiconductor body 6 , a plurality of bond pads 3 disposed substantially over the active circuit area and electrical connections between the bond pads 3 and the active circuit 4 . Each one of the bond pads 3 has a wire-bonding region 23 for bonding a wire 24 and a circuit-connecting region 22 for the electrical connection with the active circuit 4 . The active circuit 4 comprises active circuit devices 7 , an interconnect structure comprising at least one patterned metal layer disposed in overlying relationship relative to the active circuit devices 7 and a layer 20 of passivating material disposed atop the interconnect structure, through which the electrical connections pass. The layer 20 of passivating material substantially consists of inorganic material and is substantially free from interruptions beneath the wire-bonding region 23 of the bond pads 3 . The bond pads 3 and the layer 20 of passivating material have thicknesses that jointly counteract the occurrence of damage to the active circuit 4 during bonding of the wire 24 to the wire-bonding region 23.

Inventors

  • 👤 Hendrik K. Kloen
  • 👤 Lodewijk P. Huiskamp

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction US
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-04 18:24
CPC Classifications
H; H10; H10W; H10W72/00; H10W72/90; H10W20/00; H10W20/40; H10W70/00; H10W70/60; H10W72/071; H10W72/075; H10W72/07531; H10W72/07532; H10W72/07533; H10W72/50; H10W72/531; H10W72/536; H10W72/551; H10W72/552; H10W72/5522; H10W72/5524; H10W72/5525; H10W72/59; H10W72/921; H10W72/923; H10W72/931; H10W72/932; H10W72/934; H10W72/951; H10W72/952

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 9
Claim 1
Independent Claim 202 words
An integrated circuit device comprising: an active circuit provided in an active circuit area at a surface of a semiconductor body, said active circuit comprising active circuit devices, said active circuit further comprising an interconnect structure comprising at least one patterned metal layer disposed in overlying relationship relative to the active circuit devices and a layer of passivating material disposed atop the interconnect structure, a plurality of bond pads, each of said bond pads providing a wire-bonding region for bonding a wire, said bond pads being disposed substantially over the active circuit area, electrical connections between the bond pads and the active circuit devices, said electrical connections extending from a circuit-connecting region provided by the bond pads and passing through the layer of passivating material, characterized in that the circuit-connecting region of the bond pads is situated substantially outside of the wire-bonding region of the bond pads, the layer of passivating material substantially consists of inorganic material, the layer of passivating material beneath the wire-bonding region of the bond pads is substantially free from interruptions, the layer of passivating material and the bond pads have thicknesses that jointly counteract the occurrence of damage to the active circuit during bonding of the wire.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 202 words
An integrated circuit device comprising: an active circuit provided in an active circuit area at a surface of a semiconductor body, said active circuit comprising active circuit devices, said active circuit further comprising an interconnect structure comprising at least one patterned metal layer disposed in overlying relationship relative to the active circuit devices and a layer of passivating material disposed atop the interconnect structure, a plurality of bond pads, each of said bond pads providing a wire-bonding region for bonding a wire, said bond pads being disposed substantially over the active circuit area, electrical connections between the bond pads and the active circuit devices, said electrical connections extending from a circuit-connecting region provided by the bond pads and passing through the layer of passivating material, characterized in that the circuit-connecting region of the bond pads is situated substantially outside of the wire-bonding region of the bond pads, the layer of passivating material substantially consists of inorganic material, the layer of passivating material beneath the wire-bonding region of the bond pads is substantially free from interruptions, the layer of passivating material and the bond pads have thicknesses that jointly counteract the occurrence of damage to the active circuit during bonding of the wire.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 34 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the wire-bonding region of the bond pads and the circuit-connecting region of the bond pads are part of one common layer.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 31 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the wire-bonding region of the bond pads is located substantially at the periphery of the active circuit area.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 18 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the bond pads comprise aluminium.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 21 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the layer of passivating material comprises silicon nitride.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 42 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 5 , characterized in that the layer of passivating material has a thickness of at least 1.2 μm and that the bond pads comprise aluminum and have a thickness of at least 1.1 μm.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 47 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 6 , characterized in that the layer of passivating material has a thickness in the range of about 1.4 to 2.0 μm and that the bond pads have a thickness in the range of about 2 to 3 μm.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim 17 words
An integrated circuit device as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the wire comprises gold.

References Cited (Backward Citations)

US5719448A Cited
US5365112A Cited
EP0587442A2 Cited
US5539244A Cited
US5773899A Cited
US5925931A Cited
US6150725A Cited
US5962918A Cited

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Annuity Stage Window Opens Payment Deadline Surcharge Period Until Estimated Fee Status
3.5 Years (Year 4) 2004-05-07 2004-11-06 2005-05-08 $2000.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8) 2008-05-07 2008-11-06 2009-05-08 $3760.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12) 2012-05-07 2012-11-06 2013-05-08 $7700.00 Window Closed / Lapsed

Assigned Categories & Tags

No categories assigned to this patent yet.

Assign Category Tag