Integrated inductor for integrated circuit devices

• US 9,881,990 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2016
• Issued: 01/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tahoe Research Limited (f/k/a Learndale Limited) (Vector Capital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Duevel, Andreas, Kamgaing, Telesphor, Rao, Valluri R., Zillmann, Uwe
• Primary Examiner(s): Rizkallah, Kimberly
• Assistant Examiner(s): Turner, Brian
• Application Number:
  US15/169,665
• Publication Number:
  US 20160276424A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• Field of Search: 257531, 330277, 438 3, 336200
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 17/0006 Printed inductances printed coils for dynamo-electric machines H02K3/26; printed circuits H05K
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 2017/002 Details of via holes for interconnecting the layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/76898 formed through a semiconductor substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/4813 Connecting within a semiconductor or solid-state body, i.e. fly wire, bridge wire
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/481 Internal lead connections, e.g. via connections, feedthrough structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/5227 Inductive arrangements or effects of, or between, wiring layers other inductive arrangements H01L23/645
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0688 Integrated circuits having a three-dimensional layout
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/08 including only semiconductor components of a single kind
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 28/10 Inductors
• 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 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

A three-dimensional inductor is formed in an integrated circuit die using conductive through-body-vias which pass through the body of the die and contact one or more metal interconnect layers on the front side of the die and terminate on the back side of the die. In another embodiment, the through-body-vias may pass through a dielectric material disposed in a plug in the body of the die. In yet another aspect, a transformer may be formed by coupling multiple inductors formed using through-body-vias. In still another aspect, a three-dimensional inductor may include conductors formed of stacks of on chip metallization layers and conductive through-layer-vias disposed in insulation layers between metallization layers. Other embodiments are described.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor;

a video controller coupled to the processor and the memory; and

a semiconductor die coupled to at least one of the processor, memory and video controller, the die having a body, a front side, a back side, and a first through-body-via-based inductor disposed in the die and having a first turn which includes first and second conductive through-body-vias passing through the body of the die from the front side of the die to the back side of the die, said first and second through-body-vias each having a front side end at the front side of the die and said first and second through-body-vias each having a back side end at the back side of the die;

said first turn further including first and second stack conductors disposed on the front side of the die and coupled to the first and second through-body-vias, respectively, each stack conductor comprising;

an interleaved stack of electrically conductive metal layers separated by insulation layers disposed at the front side of the die; and

a plurality of conductive through-layer-vias in each insulation layer, each through-layer-via passing through an insulation layer and electrically coupling adjacent metal layers of the stack conductor.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the first turn of the first inductor further includes a first series conductor disposed at one of the front side and the back side of the die and electrically coupling together ends of the first and second through-body-vias.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the first inductor further has a second turn which includes third and fourth conductive through-body-vias passing through the body of the die from the front side of the die to the back side of the die, said third and fourth through-body-vias each having a front side end at the front side of the die and a back side end at the back side of the die, wherein the second turn further includes a second series conductor disposed at one of the front side and the back side of the die and electrically coupling together the third and fourth through-body-via conductors.

4. The system of claim 3 the first inductor further has a bridge conductor disposed at one of the front side and back side of the die and electrically coupling a through-body-via of the first turn and a through-body-via of the second turn in series.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the die has a plurality of conductive metal layers deposited on the back side of the die which include a first conductive metal layer having a first thickness and a first resistance, and a second conductive metal layer having a second thickness at least several times thicker than the first thickness and a second resistance less than the first resistance and wherein the bridge conductor includes at least a portion of the second conductive metal layer.

6. The system of claim 3 further comprising:

a transformer having a core in the die body, said transformer including said first through-body-via based inductor and including a second through-body-via-based inductor in the die having first and second turns, wherein the first and second turns of the first and second through-body-via-based inductors are interwound so that the first and second through-body-via-based inductors are inductively coupled together and share the core in the die body.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the body of the die defines first and second through-body passageways passing through the body of the die from the front side of the die to the back side of the die;

and

wherein the first and second conductive through-body-vias comprise conductive metal deposited in said first and second through-body passageways and extending from the front side of the die to the back side of the die.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the body of the die includes semiconductor material which forms the walls of the first and second through-body passageways, and wherein the body further has insulative liner material deposited in each through-body passageway and disposed between the conductive metal of each of the first and second conductive through-body-vias and the semiconductor material of the walls of the first and second through-body passageways.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein the body of the die has semiconductor material which defines a cavity, and a plug of insulative material disposed in the cavity of semiconductor material, and wherein the plug of insulative material defines at least a portion of the first and second through-body passageways passing through the plug of insulative material disposed in the body of the die;

and

wherein at least a portion of the first and second conductive through-body-vias comprise conductive metal deposited in said first and second through-body passageways in the plug of insulative material.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the die has further has conductive metal layers deposited on the front side and deposited on the back side of the die, wherein each through-body-via extends to and is in electrical contact with at least one conductive metal layer of the front side and on the back side of the die.

11. The system of claim 1 further comprising:

transistor devices at the front side of the die;

a redistribution layer having an interconnection conductor coupled to the first inductor at the back side of the die; and

an interconnection through-body via electrically coupled to the interconnection conductor and to at least one of said transistor devices on the front side of the die wherein the first inductor is electrically coupled to at least one of said transistor devices on the front side of the die.

12. The system of claim 1 further comprising:

a transformer having a core, said transformer including said first through-body-via based inductor and a second through-body-via-based inductor in the die having a first turn, wherein the first turns of the first and second through-body-via-based inductors are inductively coupled so that the first and second through-body-via-based inductors in the die share the core.

13. The system of claim 1 wherein said system is a wireless communication system and said die has an integrated circuit die on the front side of the die which is adapted to perform functions in wireless communication.