Microbonds X-Wire Now Qualified for Linear Technology's IC Packages

Linear Technology Corporation and Microbonds have announced successful qualification of Microbonds X-Wire insulated wire bonding technology to enable design flexibility for Linear Technology’s advanced IC packages.

 

The global economy has been witnessing an increasing demand for electronics that is driving the need for greater performance capabilities of advanced integrated circuits to be squeezed into smaller geometries and shrinking form factors.

Microbonds’ X-Wire insulated bonding wire technology is a nano-scale material that is designed to address many of the difficult interconnect challenges arising from increasingly complex single and 3D stacked die packaging.

 

Over two years, Linear Technology performed a comprehensive set of manufacturability and reliability testing using X-Wire on high voltage applications with a gold-based coated bonding wire.

X-Wire passed all test criteria, thereby meeting industry standards that include JEDEC J-STD-020C MSL Level 1 and JESD22-A reliability standards. X-Wire also successfully achieved Linear Technology’s stringent internal electrical and functional test requirements.

Linear Technology is positioning X-Wire for its use on a number of product lines to increase its capability and shorten product and development and package design cycle time, all which using the existing low cost assembly infrastructure.

“X-Wire Technology will enable us to pack more chip functionality into standard packages permitting bonding wires to now touch and cross in 3D space, without risk of electrical failure. This allows us the flexibility to connect chips in ways that were not possible before”, said Greg Peck, Director of Engineering at Linear Technology, in a Friday statement.

Linear Technology Corporation designs, manufacturers and markets a broad line of standard high performance integrated circuits. The company’s products are used in such applications as telecommunications, cellular telephones, networking products, notebook and desktop computers, video/multimedia, industrial instrumentation, automotive electronics, factory automation, process control and military and space systems.

Microbonds is considered to be a pioneer in the development and licensing of insulated bonding wire technology for semiconductor packaging and devices. The company’s approach has been proven through testing with major IC companies and alliances with the industry supply chain.

 

Microbonds X-Wire Technology provides essential capability in the 3D space that has not been available before. In doing so, the company is expanding the capabilities of the technology and the applications within the global consumer electronics industry. As this industry continues to grow, this technology will effectively help to drive that growth, thereby driving the demand for its technology. The result will not only be increased functionality within products, but a better market position for Microbonds.