Characteristics Of Through-silicon Vias Research Articles

Analysis of Signal Propagation Through TSVs Within Distilled Water for Liquid-Cooled Microsystems

This paper analyzes the impact of liquid cooling on the electrical characteristics of through-silicon vias (TSVs) using a microfluidic cooling testbed containing TSVs. The microfabrication of TSVs in a silicon micropin-fin heat sink is presented, and the high-frequency characterization of TSVs within a micropin-fin heat sink using distilled water is performed from 10 MHz to 20 GHz. TSV capacitance and conductance are extracted from measurements; TSVs within distilled water have larger capacitance and conductance than TSVs in silicon due to the lossy characteristics of distilled water at high frequencies. A coaxial-like TSV configuration, which consists of multiple ground TSVs surrounding a center signal TSV, is proposed and demonstrated to shield signal TSVs from the coolant.

A Performance Analysis for Interconnections of 3D ICs with Frequency-Dependent TSV Model in S-parameter

In this study, the effects of the frequencydependent characteristics of through-silicon vias (TSVs) on the performance of 3D ICs are examined by evaluating a typical interconnection structure, which is composed of 32-nm CMOS inverter drivers and receivers connected through TSVs. The frequency-domain model of TSVs is extracted in S-parameter from a 3D electromagnetic (EM) method, where the dimensional variation effect of TSVs can be accurately considered for a comprehensive parameter sweep simulation. A parametric analysis shows that the propagation delay increases with the diameter and height of the TSVs but decreases with the pitch and liner thickness. We also investigate the crosstalk effect between TSVs by testing different signaling conditions. From the simulations, the worst signal integrity is observed when the signal experiences a simultaneously coupled transition in the opposite direction from the aggressor lines. Simulation results for nine-TSV bundles having regular and staggered patterns reveal that the proposed method can characterize TSV-based 3D interconnections of any dimensions and patterns.

Technology Assessment of Through-Silicon Via by Using $C$–$V$ and $C$–$t$ Measurements

C-V characteristics of through-silicon vias (TSVs) manufactured in two different processing lines are compared to demonstrate the reproducibility of the TSV process module in terms of the minimum TSV depletion capacitance in the operating voltage region. TSV C-V and C-t measurements before and after thermocycling are employed for assessing the oxide liner and Ta barrier integrity of the TSV under the influence of temperature. It is observed that TSV C-V and C-t characteristics remain unchanged before and after thermocycling (1000 cycles).

Miniaturization of a Wireless Sensor Node by Means of 3D Interconnects

This work presents an advanced sensor node for direct tire pressure monitoring with an overall size below 1 cm3, where the applied components are arranged in a 3D integrated stack for high compactness, improved thermal behavior, and enhanced robustness for pressure, inertia, and temperature sensing. The utilized through silicon via (TSV) technology is introduced and the wide range of resulting issues for the design of a sensor node are considered. In particular, the radio frequency (RF) characteristics of TSVs are investigated in detail focusing on their electrical efficiency. Finally an optimized TSV design is presented, which allows the connection of a Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) resonator with an impedance of 2 kΩ at 2.1 GHz. Thus, all required types of interconnections within the sensor node can be realized by means of the TSV technology.