Tag Archives: Advanced Packaging

May 3, 2012 – Marketwire — GaN Systems Inc., provider of gallium nitride power switching semiconductors, and Arkansas Power Electronics International Inc. (APEI), developer of state-of-the-art technology for power electronics systems, electronic motor drives, and power electronics packaging, will co-develop a high-temperature, high-performance package optimized for gallium nitride (GaN) transistors and diodes.

The collaboration is funded in part by the Government of Canada through Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), with the goal of demonstrating the efficiency, performance, and reliability of gallium nitride power devices in a power converter for hybrid and electric vehicles (HEVs and EVs).

Next-generation power semiconductors are adopting GaN, and prospective users want to see the technology validated through real system design implementations, said Girvan Patterson, CEO of GaN Systems. GaN Systems uses a patented, island-based topology, an emerging gallium nitride device technology. "Advanced packaging…unlocks the vast potential of gallium nitride in high-power applications.

May 3, 2012 — Nitto Denko Corporation approved a transfer of its Nitto Electronics Kyushu Corporation (Japan) and Nitto Denko Electronics (Malaysia) Snd. Bhd. businesses, as well as personnel, other assets, and properties related to its semiconductor encapsulating materials business, to Hitachi Chemical Co. Ltd.

The transfer price was set at 5.4 billion yen, subject to change depending on asset, liability, and exchange rate conditions. The deal was first brokered in March 2012.

The semiconductor encapsulant business, excluding optoelectronics encapsulants, is focused on transfer molds, has a

May 1, 2012 — The top three outsourced semiconductor assembly and test services (OSATS) providers raised 2012 capital expenditures (capex) during their earnings reports, from initial plans announced in January, report analysts at Citi.

To increase capacity due to mobility growth, Amkor (AMKR) raised capex from $300M to $550M; Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Incorporated (ASE) raised capex from $725M to $800M; and Siliconware Precision Industries Co. Ltd. (SPIL) raised capex from $350M to $600M. Collective, the three companies increased 2012 capex by $575M or 42% vs. January plans.

April 26, 2012 — After pioneering low-cost wafer- and panel-based glass and silicon interposers in Phase 1 of its SiGI consortium, Georgia Tech Packaging Research Center (GT-PRC) is beginning Phase 2 in June.

The industry consortium involves about ~30 semiconductor, package, and related supply-chain companies from the US, Europe, and Asia. They developed glass and silicon interposers with 10x higher I/Os than conventional organic packages, at 2-10x lower cost per mm2 than back end of line (BEOL) silicon interposers.

SiGI Phase 1 has demonstrated technologies to:

  • handle ultra-thin glass and silicon wafers and panels,
  • form small through-package vias (TPV) at fine pitches with high throughput and high reliability,
  • and make 5

April 26, 2012 — At its Fab 8 in Saratoga County, NY, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is installing a special set of semiconductor production tools to create through-silicon vias (TSV) in 20nm node semiconductor wafers. 3D die stacking of leading-edge chips will enable mobile and consumer electronics. The first full-flow silicon with TSVs is expected to start running at Fab 8 in Q3 2012.

GLOBALFOUNDRIES is working with partners to develop packaging processes on advanced silicon nodes, said Gregg Bartlett, CTO, GLOBALFOUNDRIES, noting the complexity of chip/package interactions in next-generation nodes and the scaling alternative offered by 3D integration. The 20nm TSV capabilities at Fab 8 are supplemented by GLOBALFOUNDRIES

April 25, 2012 — Nordson ASYMTEK, a fluid dispensing, coating, and jetting technology supplier, uncrated the NexJet System for jetting, with a newly designed jet cartridge and new software control for semiconductor packaging applications such as flip chip underfill, chip scale packages (CSP), ball grid arrays (BGA), package-on-package (PoP) underfill, precise coating, and adhesive dispensing.

The Genius Jet Cartridge one-piece jet is quickly and easily removed without tools, much like an ink jet cartridge. The cartridge dispenses up to 50 million cycles before a replacement is necessary, depending upon the application. It has built-in memory to store usage data like the number of cycles and cartridge type, which is communicated to the jetting tool and compared to the recipe for process control.

The NexJet System