Stress-Induced Delamination Of Through Silicon Via Structures

Continuous scaling of on-chip wiring structures has brought significant challenges for materials and processes beyond the 32 nm technology node in microelectronics. Recently three-dimensional (3-D) integration with through-silicon-vias (TSVs) has emerged as an effective solution to meet the future interconnect requirement. Thermo-mechanical reliability is a key concern for the development of TSV structures used in die stacking as 3-D interconnects. This paper examines the effect of thermal stresses on interfacial reliability of TSV structures. First, the three-dimensional distribution of the thermal stress near the TSV and the wafer surface is analyzed. Using a linear superposition method, a semi-analytic solution is developed for a simplified structure consisting of a single TSV embedded in a silicon (Si) wafer. The solution is verified for relatively thick wafers by comparing to numerical results obtained by finite element analysis (FEA). Results from the stress analysis suggest interfacial delamination as a potential failure mechanism for the TSV structure. Analytical solutions for various TSV designs are then obtained for the steady-state energy release rate as an upper bound for the interfacial fracture driving force, while the effect of crack length is evaluated numerically by FEA. Based on these results, the effects of TSV designs and via material properties on the interfacial reliability are elucidated. Finally, potential failure mechanisms for TSV pop-up due to interfacial fracture are discussed.Aerospace Engineerin

Thermomechanical Reliability Challenges For 3D Interconnects With Through-Silicon Vias

Continual scaling of on-chip wiring structures has brought significant challenges for materials and processes beyond the 32 nm technology node in microelectronics. Recently threedimensional (3-D) integration with through-silicon-vias (TSVs) has emerged as an effective solution to meet the future interconnect requirement. Among others, thermo-mechanical reliability is a key concern for the development of TSV structures used in die stacking as 3-D interconnects. This paper examines the effects of thermally induced stresses on interfacial reliability of TSV structures. First, three-dimensional distribution of the thermal stress near the TSV and the wafer surface is analyzed. Using a linear superposition method, a semi-analytic solution is developed for a simplified structure consisting of a single TSV embedded in a silicon (Si) wafer. The solution is verified for relatively thick wafers by comparing to numerical results From finite element analysis (FEA). The stress analysis suggests interfacial delamination as a potential failure mechanism for the TSV structure. An analytical solution is then obtained for the steady-state energy release rate as the upper bound for the interfacial fracture driving force, while the effect of crack length is evaluated numerically by FEA. With these results, the effects of the TSV dimensions (e.g., via diameter and wafer thickness) on the interfacial reliability are elucidated. Furthermore, the effects of via material properties are discussed.Aerospace Engineerin

Infrared spectroscopy under multi-extreme conditions: Direct observation of pseudo gap formation and collapse in CeSb

Infrared reflectivity measurements of CeSb under multi-extreme conditions (low temperatures, high pressures and high magnetic fields) were performed. A pseudo gap structure, which originates from the magnetic band folding effect, responsible for the large enhancement in the electrical resistivity in the single-layered antiferromagnetic structure (AF-1 phase) was found at a pressure of 4 GPa and at temperatures of 35 - 50 K. The optical spectrum of the pseudo gap changes to that of a metallic structure with increasing magnetic field strength and increasing temperature. This change is the result of the magnetic phase transition from the AF-1 phase to other phases as a function of the magnetic field strength and temperature. This result is the first optical observation of the formation and collapse of a pseudo gap under multi-extreme conditions.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.