Design standards for effective MCM design

Abstract

MCM design requires many elements of both IC and printed circuit board (PCB) design. The combination of industry standards and well developed processes is yielding excellent design systems for leading electronics firms. The MCM industry, however, is lacking many of the standards necessary for creating effective design systems. Significant efforts need to be made to overcome major shortcomings in industry infrastructure, concurrent engineering, staff expertise, and design tools. The current state of MCM design is assessed using the IC design process as an positive example. Significant industry investment has yielded enormous gains in IC design productivity, time-to-market, and functional costs. The electronic packaging industry can benefit from similar approaches. Successful MCM design first requires a standard method for modeling all of the elements in a design, including the components, substrates, assembly processes, and performance requirements. Data for these models must be gathered from a wide range of sources; it is not unusual on a single design to receive information from 20 manufacturers. Since data gathering is very time-consuming, these models should be available before starting actual designs. The paper gives detailed examples of specific issues concerning modeling components, substrates, and assemblies. Systems for capturing die data, substrate design rules, and assembly design rules are described. These systems are being used in work conducted as part of the IMAPS' Ceramic Interconnect Initiative. The results of developing and using design standards will be significant: better products built at lower cost and brought to market quickly.