Abstract:
A system for connecting circuit boards is provided. A plurality of overlapping spaced apart circuit boards have a plurality of conductive pins passing through holes in the circuit boards. A connector includes a flexible sheet insulator and a plurality of conductive surfaces separated and supported by the flexible insulator. At least one of the conductive surfaces has a hole there through and a bent compliant lead extending there from. The hole engages one of the pins, and the complaint lead connects to one of the circuit boards.
Abstract:
An ovenized oscillator package including at least a heater and a crystal package mounted on opposite sides of a circuit board. Vias extend through the body of the circuit board to transfer heat from the heater to the crystal package. Layers of thermally conductive material extend through the body of the circuit board and are in thermally coupled relationship with the vias for spreading heat throughout the circuit board and other elements mounted thereon.
Abstract:
Two groups of interconnection devices and methods are described. Both provide columns between electronic packages and boards or between chips and substrates or the like. In the first group, called Thermal Flex Contact Carrier (TFCC), the column elements are carved out of a flat laminated structure and then formed to suit. In the second group, the carrier, which carries the connecting elements, is made out of a soluble or removable material, which acts at the same time, as a solder mask, to prevent the solder from wicking along the stem of the elements.
Abstract:
A method of coupling an integrated circuit (IC) assembly to a printed wiring board (PWB) is provided. The method comprises applying a solder paste to at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad having a first size on a surface of the IC assembly and applying a solder paste to at least one PWB interfacial attach pad having a second size on a surface of the PWB. The method also comprises reflow attaching the at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad to the at least one PWB interfacial attach pad, wherein the difference between the size of the at least one PWB interfacial attach pad and the size of the at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad substantially inhibits self-alignment and lift-off forces.
Abstract:
A system for connecting circuit boards is provided. A plurality of overlapping spaced apart circuit boards have a plurality of conductive pins passing through holes in the circuit boards. A connector includes a flexible sheet insulator and a plurality of conductive surfaces separated and supported by the flexible insulator. At least one of the conductive surfaces has a hole there through and a bent compliant lead extending there from. The hole engages one of the pins, and the complaint lead connects to one of the circuit boards.
Abstract:
The present invention relates generally to permanent interconnections between electronic devices, such as integrated circuit packages, chips, wafers and printed circuit boards or substrates, or similar electronic devices. More particularly it relates to high-density electronic devices. The invention describes means and methods that can be used to counteract the undesirable effects of thermal cycling, shock and vibrations and severe environment conditions in general. For leaded devices, the leads are oriented to face the thermal center of the devices and the system they interact with. For leadless devices, the mounting elements are treated or prepared to control the migration of solder along the length of the elements, to ensure that those elements retain their desired flexibility.
Abstract:
A method of coupling an integrated circuit (IC) assembly to a printed wiring board (PWB) is provided. The method comprises applying a solder paste to at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad having a first size on a surface of the IC assembly and applying a solder paste to at least one PWB interfacial attach pad having a second size on a surface of the PWB. The method also comprises reflow attaching the at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad to the at least one PWB interfacial attach pad, wherein the difference between the size of the at least one PWB interfacial attach pad and the size of the at least one IC assembly interfacial attach pad substantially inhibits self-alignment and lift-off forces.
Abstract:
Contact structures exhibiting resilience or compliance for a variety of electronic components are formed by bonding a free end of a wire to a substrate, configuring the wire into a wire stem having a springable shape, severing the wire stem, and overcoating the wire stem with at least one layer of a material chosen primarily for its structural (resiliency, compliance) characteristics. A variety of techniques for configuring, severing, and overcoating the wire stem are disclosed. In an exemplary embodiment, a free end of a wire stem is bonded to a contact area on a substrate, the wire stem is configured to have a springable shape, the wire stem is severed to be free-standing by an electrical discharge, and the free-standing wire stem is overcoated by plating. A variety of materials for the wire stem (which serves as a falsework) and for the overcoat (which serves as a superstructure over the falsework) are disclosed. Various techniques are described for mounting the contact structures to a variety of electronic components (e.g., semiconductor wafers and dies, semiconductor packages, interposers, interconnect substrates, etc.), and various process sequences are described. The resilient contact structures described herein are ideal for making a “temporary” (probe) connections to an electronic component such as a semiconductor die, for burn-in and functional testing. The self-same resilient contact structures can be used for subsequent permanent mounting of the electronic component, such as by soldering to a printed circuit board (PCB). An irregular topography can be created on or imparted to the tip of the contact structure to enhance its ability to interconnect resiliently with another electronic component. Among the numerous advantages of the present invention is the great facility with which the tips of a plurality of contact structures can be made to be coplanar with one another. Other techniques and embodiments, such as wherein the falsework wirestem protrudes beyond an end of the superstructure, or is melted down, and wherein multiple free-standing resilient contact structures can be fabricated from loops, are described.
Abstract:
An interconnection contact structure assembly including an electronic component having a surface and a conductive contact carried by the electronic component and accessible at the surface. The contact structure includes an internal flexible elongate member having first and second ends and with the first end forming a first intimate bond to the surface of said conductive contact terminal without the use of a separate bonding material. An electrically conductive shell is provided and is formed of at least one layer of a conductive material enveloping the elongate member and forming a second intimate bond with at least a portion of the conductive contact terminal immediately adjacent the first intimate bond.
Abstract:
In one aspect of the present invention, subminiature fuses are soldered to a PCB via clips attached to the fuse end caps. The clips are physically attached to the PCB pads, enabling the fuse to be replaced if needed and providing thermal decoupling between the fuse and the heating sinking solder/PCB pads. The fuse and clips can also be picked and placed in one operation. In another aspect, improved fuse clips are provided that include tabs that separate the housing portions of the clips from the heating sinking solder/PCB pads. Such improved clips further enhance thermal decoupling. In a further aspect, an improved fuse is provided, in which the thermal decoupling tabs just described are provided directly with the fuse. In yet a further aspect, a thermally insultive fuse body is provided to further decouple the fuse element from its surroundings.