IC card

• US 7,048,197 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2004
• Issued: 05/23/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Electronics Corporation (Renesas Electronics Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Renesas Technology Corporation (Renesas Electronics Corporation)
• Inventors: Shiraishi, Atsushi, Nishizawa, Hirotaka, Ishihara, Haruji, Yukawa, Yousuke, Kanemoto, Kouichi
• Primary Examiner(s): FUREMAN, JARED
• Application Number:
  US10/988,622
• Publication Number:
  US 20050090129A1
• Time in Patent Office: 553 Days
• Field of Search: 235/492, 235/441, 361/737, 361/42, 361/763, 361/764, 361/822, 257/679, 174/255, 439/180, 439/630, 439/60, 902/25, 902/26, 340/7.32
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07732 the record carrier having a housing or construction similar to well-known portable memory devices, such as SD cards, USB or memory sticks housings for electrical equipment in general, see H05K5/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07743 External electrical contacts
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/066 Means for reducing external access-lines for a semiconductor memory clip, e.g. by multiplexing at least address and data signals
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2223/54406 comprising alphanumeric information
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2223/54486 Located on package parts, e.g. encapsulation, leads, package substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48145 the bodies being stacked
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48227 connecting the wire to a bond pad of the item
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/49171 Fan-out arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2225/06562 at least one device in the stack being rotated or offset
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/18 the devices being of types provided for in two or more different subgroups of the same main group of groups H01L27/00 - H01L33/00, or in a single subclass of H10K, H10N
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00012 Relevant to the scope of the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01021 Scandium [Sc]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01039 Yttrium [Y]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01078 Platinum [Pt]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01079 Gold [Au]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/14 Integrated circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/3011 Impedance
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/117 Pads along the edge of rigid circuit boards, e.g. for pluggable connectors

Abstract

An IC card has a card substrate having semiconductor integrated circuit chips mounted thereon and a plurality of connector terminals formed thereon. The connector terminals are exposed from a casing. The connector terminals are laid out in plural sequences in staggered form between sequences adjacent to one another forward and backward as viewed in an IC card inserting direction. Owing to the adoption of the staggered layout, a structure or configuration wherein the amounts of protrusions of socket terminals of a card socket are changed and the socket terminals are laid out in tandem, can be adopted with relative ease. If a connector terminal arrangement of a downward or low-order IC card is adopted as a specific connector terminal sequence as it is, whereas a function dedicated for an upward or high-order IC card is assigned to another staggered connector terminal arrangement, then backward compatibility can also be implemented with ease.

Claims

1. A memory card comprising:

a card substrate having a front surface and a back surface opposed to said front surface;

a plurality of connecting pads formed over said front surface;

a memory chip formed over said front surface;

a controller chip for said memory chip formed over said front surface;

a plurality of test terminals formed over said front surface, and

wherein said controller chip, said memory chip and a part of said connecting pads are molded by resin,

wherein, in a memory card inserting direction, said connecting pads, said controller chip, said memory chip and said test terminals are arranged over said front surface in order of said connecting pads, said controller chip, said memory chip, and said test terminals, respectively.

2. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said connecting pads and said controller chip are electrically connected by using bonding wires, and

wherein said controller chip and said memory chip are electrically connected by using bonding wires.

3. A memory card according to claim 2, further comprising:

a plurality of relay patterns formed over said card substrate,

wherein said controller chip and relay patterns are electrically connected by using bonding wires,

wherein said relay patterns and memory chip are electrically connected by using bonding wires, and

wherein, in a memory card inserting direction, said connecting pads, said controller chip, said memory chip and said relay patterns are arranged over said front surface in order of said connecting pads, said controller chip, said relay pattern and said memory chip, respectively.

4. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said plurality of connecting pads are laid out in first and second sequences staggered relatively in a sequence direction and adjacent to one another forward and back as viewed in a memory card inserting direction.

5. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said plurality of connecting pads are arranged in a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

6. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said controller chip has a shape long along a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

7. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said memory chip has a shape long along a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

8. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein a size of said memory chip is larger than a size of said controller chip.

9. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein a second memory chip is stacked with said first memory chip over said front surface.

10. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein said memory chip is a flash memory chip.

11. A memory card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of connector terminals formed over said back surface; and

a plurality of through holes formed in said card substrate and electrically connected to said connecting pads and said connector terminals,

wherein said through holes are not molded by said resin.

12. A memory card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of connector terminals arranged over said back surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads,

wherein said connector terminals include a clock terminal, a data terminal, and a command terminal.

13. A memory card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of connector terminals arranged over said back surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads,

wherein said connector terminals are arranged in two rows.

14. A memory card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of connector terminals arranged over said back surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads,

wherein the number of said connector terminals is seven.

15. A memory card according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of connector terminals arranged over said back surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads,

wherein the number of said connector terminals is thirteen.

16. A memory card according to claim 1,

wherein a planar size of said memory card is set to 24 mm×

32 mm.

17. A memory card according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of said memory card is set to 1.4 mm.

18. A memory card comprising:

a substrate having a front surface and a back surface opposed to said front surface;

a plurality of connecting pads arranged over said front surface;

a first flash memory chip mounted over said front surface;

a controller chip for said first flash memory chip mounted over said front surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads;

a plurality of first terminals arranged over said front surface and electrically connected to said first flash memory chip;

a plurality of second terminals arranged over said back surface and electrically connected to said connecting pads; and

a mold resin covering said first flash memory chip and said controller chip,

wherein, in a memory card inserting direction, said connecting pads, said controller chip, said first flash memory chip and said first terminals are arranged in order of said connecting pads, said controller chip, said first flash memory chip, and said first terminals, respectively.

19. A memory card according to claim 18, further comprising:

a casing covering said substrate, said connecting pads, said mold resin, and said first terminals.

20. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said first terminals are used for testing said first flash memory chip.

21. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said second terminals include a clock terminal, a data terminal, and a command terminal.

22. A memory card according to claim 21,

wherein said second terminals are arranged in two rows.

23. A memory card according to claim 21,

wherein the number of said second terminals is seven.

24. A memory card according to claim 21,

wherein the number of said second terminals is thirteen.

25. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein a planar size of said memory card is set to 24 mm×

32 mm.

26. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein a thickness of said memory card is set to 1.4 mm.

27. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said connecting pads are arranged in a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

28. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said controller chip has a shape long along a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

29. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said first flash memory chip has a shape long along a direction perpendicular to said memory card inserting direction.

30. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein a size of said first flash memory chip is larger than a size of said controller chip.

31. A memory card according to claim 18, further comprising:

a second flash memory chip, and

wherein said mold resin covers said controller chip, said first flash memory chip, and said second flash memory chip.

32. A memory card according to claim 18,

wherein said second flash memory chip is mounted over said first flash memory chip.