Power management module and method of manufacture

• US 10,475,568 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2014
• Issued: 11/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: L. Pierre De Rochemont
• Original Assignee: L. Pierre De Rochemont
• Inventors: de Rochemont, L. Pierre
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Tszfung J
• Application Number:
  US14/560,935
• Publication Number:
  US 20150357112A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,804 Days
• Field of Search: 336200, 336233
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2235/768 Perovskite structure ABO3
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2235/781 Nanograined materials, i.e. having grain sizes below 100 nm
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 17/003 using lithography, e.g. photolithography lithographic compositions and processing in general G03F
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 17/06533 composed of oxides
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 7/003 Thick film resistors
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 2027/2809 on stacked layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/24 Magnetic cores
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/2804 Printed windings
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/29 Terminals; Tapping arrangements for signal inductances
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/40 Structural association with built-in electric component, e.g. fuse
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 3/00 Cores, Yokes, or armatures magnetic materials H01F1/00; permanent magnets H01F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 41/041 Printed circuit coils apparatus or processes for manufacturing printed circuits in general H05K3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 5/003 Printed circuit coils
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 4/10 Metal-oxide dielectrics H01G4/085 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 4/33 Thin- or thick-film capacitors thin- or thick-film circuits H01L27/00; capacitors without a potential-jump or surface barrier specially adapted for integrated circuits, details thereof, multistep manufacturing processes therefor H01L28/40
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/16 of an individual bump connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/64 Impedance arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 28/10 Inductors
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01019 Potassium [K]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0102 : Calcium [Ca]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01021 : Scandium [Sc]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01025 : Manganese [Mn]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01037 : Rubidium [Rb]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01057 : Lanthanum [La]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01067 : Holmium [Ho]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01077 : Iridium [Ir]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01078 : Platinum [Pt]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01079 : Gold [Au]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/3011 : Impedance
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/3025 : Electromagnetic shielding
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0298 : Multilayer circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/092 : Dispersed materials, e.g. conductive pastes or inks
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/162 : incorporating printed capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/165 : incorporating printed inductors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/167 : incorporating printed resistors
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/017 : Glass ceramic coating, e.g. formed on inorganic substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/0175 : Inorganic, non-metallic layer, e.g. resist or dielectric for printed capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/09763 : Printed component having superposed conductors, but integrated in one circuit layer
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2203/016 : Temporary inorganic, non-metallic carrier, e.g. for processing or transferring
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2203/0338 : Transferring metal or conductive material other than a circuit pattern, e.g. bump, solder, printed component
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2203/121 : Metallo-organic compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/207 : using a prefabricated paste pattern, ink pattern or powder pattern
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49021 : Magnetic recording reproducing transducer [e.g., tape head, core, etc.]

Abstract

A power management module, provides an inductor including one or more electrical conductors disposed around a ferromagnetic ceramic element including one or more metal oxides having fluctuations in metal-oxide compositional uniformity less than or equal to 1.50 mol % throughout the ceramic element.

Claims

1. A power management module formed on the surface of a semiconductor chip containing active circuit elements including one or more switching elements embedded within the semiconductor chip, comprising:

an inductor coil including one or more electrical conductors disposed around a ferromagnetic ceramic element formed on the semiconductor chip;

wherein the ferromagnetic ceramic element includes one or more metal oxides having atomic scale chemical uniformity resulting in fluctuations in metal-oxide compositional uniformity less than or equal to 1.50 mol % throughout said ceramic element, wherein 100% of all grains have a diameter that is less than or equal to 1.5×

the mean grain diameter; and

one or more switching elements formed on or within the semiconductor chip and connected to the one or more electrical conductors to alter an effective number of windings of the inductor coil.

2. The module of claim 1, wherein said module includes at least one other discrete component having a ceramic element formed on the surface of the semiconductor chip and also being in electrical communication with the active circuit elements.

3. The module of claim 1, wherein the electrical conductor forms a coil around the ferromagnetic ceramic element and includes a plurality of selectable connections to the coil to enable selective variation coil inductance.

4. The module of claim 3, wherein the switching elements are adapted to selectively connect to any of the one or more electrical conductors.

5. The module of claim 1, wherein the inductor is a transformer having a plurality of electrical conductors disposed around the ferromagnetic ceramic element.

6. The module of claim 1, wherein the electrical conductor forms a first coil around the ferromagnetic ceramic element, and further comprising a second coil formed around the ferromagnetic element and inductively coupled to the first coil.

7. The module of claim 6, further comprising an amorphous insulator formed between the first and second coils.

8. The module of claim 1, wherein said one or more metal oxides have a body-centered cubic crystalline phase, that includes iron oxide (Fe.sub.2O.sub.3) and amounts of one or more of:

cobalt monoxide (CoO), nickel oxide (NiO), zinc oxide (ZnO), manganese oxide (MnO), copper oxide (CuO), vanadium oxide (VO), magnesium oxide (MgO) and lithium oxide (Li.sub.2O).

9. The module of claim 1, wherein the electrical conductor includes a multiplicity of additional conductors, including one or more second electrical conductors formed as circuit board traces and located beneath said ceramic element.

10. The module of claim 9, wherein each of said one or more second electrical conductors are elongated and have contact pads located at opposing ends thereof, and further wherein said multiplicity of additional conductors includes a plurality of electrical contact posts located on said contact pads and adjacent said ceramic element.

11. The module of claim 10, wherein said multiplicity of additional conductors includes one or more wire bonds located over said ceramic element and connecting said electrical conductor posts.

12. The module of claim 1, wherein the metal oxides have a rhombic, dodecahedron or trapezohedron crystalline structure, that includes silicon tetraoxide (SiO.sub.4) with varying amounts of iron oxide (FeO), calcium oxide (CaO), magnesium oxide (MgO), or manganese oxide (MnO) in combination with varying amounts of one or more metal oxides from the group consisting of:

aluminum oxide (Al.sub.2.O.sub.3), iron oxide (Fe.sub.2.O.sub.3), chromium oxide (Cr.sub.2.O.sub.3), vanadium oxide (V.sub.2.O.sub.3), zirconium oxide (ZrO.sub.2), titanium oxide (TiO.sub.2), yttrium oxide (Y.sub.2.O.sub.3), cobalt oxide (Co.sub.3.O.sub.4), gadolinium oxide (Gd.sub.2.O.sub.3), neodymium oxide (Nd.sub.2.O.sub.3) and holmium oxide (Ho.sub.2.O.sub.3).