SMART CARD AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SMART CARD

• US 20160218071A1
• Filed: 12/01/2015
• Published: 07/28/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Ji-Myung Na, Ki-Bum Nam
• Inventors: Na, Ji-myung, Nam, Ki-bum
• Application Number:
  US14/955,436
• Publication Number:
  US 20160218071A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/86 Secure or tamper-resistant housings
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/576 using active circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 28/91 made by depositing layers, e.g. by depositing alternating conductive and insulating layers
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/14 Integrated circuits

Abstract

An integrated circuit includes a detector circuit including a sensor configured to sense an alteration to a physical characteristic of a substrate and to generate an alarm signal indicating such alteration and a circuit configured to respond to the generation of the alarm signal by implementing countermeasures. A smart card may include such a circuit to counteract a back side attack.

Claims

1. A smart card comprising:

a substrate comprising a front side and a back side and having a first height between the front side and the back side;

a circuit layer disposed on the front side of the substrate and including an analog block that includes a plurality of analog circuits and a digital block that includes a plurality of digital circuits; and

at least one trench capacitor disposed in the substrate and having a second height extending from the front side of the substrate, wherein the second height is smaller than the first height and may be modified due to a back side attack on the substrate before other circuitry on the smart card is affected by the back side attack.

2. The smart card of claim 1, wherein the circuit layer further includes at least one detecting circuit that is electrically connected to the at least one capacitor and detects a change in capacitance of the at least one trench capacitor, which is caused by a change in the height of the trench capacitor.

3. The smart card of claim 2, wherein the at least one detecting circuit is a ring oscillator that includes a first terminal that is electrically connected to a first electrode of the at least one trench capacitor and a second terminal that is electrically connected to a second electrode of the at least one trench capacitor.

4. The smart card of claim 2, wherein the at least one detecting circuit and the at least one trench capacitor are employed as at least one sensor, and

the at least one trench capacitor is disposed under a field region in the analog block or under the digital block such that the at least one trench capacitor is adjacent to the at least one detecting circuit.

5. The smart card of claim 4, wherein the at least one sensor is implemented as an intellectual property (IP) block and is disposed in the field region in the analog block or in the digital block.

6. The smart card of claim 4, wherein the circuit layer further includes a frequency detector that is connected to the at least one sensor and detects a change in frequency caused by a change in capacitance of the at least one sensor.

7. The smart card of claim 6, wherein the frequency detector is implemented as an intellectual property (IP) block and is disposed in the analog block.

8. The smart card of claim 4, wherein the at least one sensor is implemented as a plurality of sensors arranged in a matrix form on the substrate.

9. The smart card of claim 8, wherein the circuit layer further includes a logic gate that is commonly connected to the plurality of sensors and detects a change in capacitance of at least one selected from the plurality of sensors, and a frequency detector that is connected to the logic gate and detects a change in frequency caused by the change in capacitance.

10. The smart card of claim 9, wherein the logic gate includes a NAND gate.

11. The smart card of claim 8, wherein the circuit layer further includes a plurality of frequency detectors that are respectively connected to the plurality of sensors and detect a change in frequency caused by the change in capacitance of the plurality of sensors.

12. The smart card of claim 1, wherein the at least one trench capacitor includes:

an insulating layer in a deep trench in the substrate;

a first electrode on the insulating layer;

a dielectric layer on the first electrode; and

a second electrode on the dielectric layer.

13. The smart card of claim 12, wherein the first and second electrodes include polysilicon.

14. The smart card of claim 12, wherein the at least one trench capacitor further includes a barrier layer on the dielectric layer, and a seed layer on the barrier layer, and

the second electrode is disposed on the second electrode.

15. The smart card of claim 14, wherein the first electrode includes polysilicon and the second electrode includes metal.

16. A smart card comprising:

a substrate; and

at least one sensor including at least one trench capacitor that detects a back side attack on the substrate, wherein the at least one trench capacitor has a height that changes due to back side polishing that is performed during the back side attack.

17. The smart card of claim 16, wherein the at least one sensor further includes a detecting circuit that is electrically connected to the at least one trench capacitor and detects a change in capacitance of the at least one trench capacitor, which is caused by a change in the height of the at least one trench capacitor.

18. The smart card of claim 17, wherein the at least one detecting circuit is a ring oscillator that comprises a first terminal that is electrically connected to a first electrode of the at least one trench capacitor, and a second terminal that is electrically connected to a second electrode of the at least one trench capacitor.

19. The smart card of claim 16, further comprising a frequency detector that is connected to the at least one sensor and detects a change in frequency caused by a change in capacitance of the at least one sensor.

20. The smart card of claim 16, wherein the at least one sensor is implemented as a plurality of sensors arranged in a matrix on the substrate.

21-36. -36. (canceled)