Demystifying Chipmaking

by Richard F. Yanda, Anne Miller, Michael Heynes

Overview

This book takes the reader through the actual manufacturing process of making a typical chip, from start to finish, including a detailed discussion of each step, in plain language. The evolution of today's technology is added to the story, as seen through the eyes of the engineers who solved some of the problems. The authors are well suited to that discussion since they are three of those same engineers. They have a broad exposure to the industry and its technology that extends all the way back to Shockley Laboratories, the first semiconductor manufacturer in Silicon Valley.

The CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) process flow is the focus of the discussion and is covered in ten chapters. The vast majority of chips made today are fabricated using this general method. In order to ensure that all readers are comfortable with the vocabulary, the first chapter carefully and clearly introduces the science concepts found in later chapters. A chapter is devoted to pointing out the differences in other manufacturing methods, such as the gallium arsenide technology that produces chips for cell phones. In addition, a chapter describing the nature of the semiconductor industry from a business perspective is included.

"The entire process of making a chip is surprisingly easy to understand. The part of the story that defies belief is the tiny dimensions: the conducting wires and other structures on a chip are more than a hundred times thinner than a hair - and getting thinner with every new chip design."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780750677608
Publisher:	Elsevier Science
Publication date:	04/14/2005
Series:	Demystifying Technology Series
Pages:	280
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

1. IC Fabrication Overview
2. Support Technologies
3. Forming Wells
4. Isolate Active Areas (Shallow Trench Isolation)
5. Building the Transistors
6. First Level Metallization
7. Multilevel Metal Interconnects and Dual Damascene
8. Test and Assembly
APPENDIX
A: Science Overview
B: Plasma Etch Supplement to Chapter 4

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Takes the reader through the entire manufacturing process making the entire process of making a chip surprisingly easy to understand

Editorial Reviews

"...a useful guide for engineers just entering the packaging sector of the semiconductor industry or for newly vetted engineering school grads." —Ron Iscoff, Editor, Chip Scale Review

"Demystifying Chipmaking...will provide an interesting overview of the IC fabrication process while familiarizing you with the terminology." —Rick Nelson, Chief Editor, Test & Measurement World

From the Publisher