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US 10,704,156 B2Granted
Method and system for electroplating a MEMS device
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorsDonald Charles Abbott, Kathryn Ann Schuck
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In described examples, a method for electroplating a semiconductor device includes: forming a metal foil; forming an inert anode support; attaching the metal foil to the inert anode support to form an anode; forming a cathode using a semiconductor substrate; immersing the anode and the cathode within an electrolyte solution; forming a circuit with a current source, the anode and the cathode; generating a current through the circuit; and electroplating a metal from the electrolyte solution onto the semiconductor substrate.
Claims12
A method comprising:
- forming a metal foil;
- forming a plastic anode support;
- attaching the metal foil to the plastic anode support to form an anode;
- forming a cathode using a semiconductor substrate;
- immersing the anode and the cathode within an electrolyte solution, the plastic anode support being chemically inert with respect to the electrolyte solution;
- forming a circuit with a current source, the anode, and the cathode;
- generating a current through the circuit;
- and
- electroplating a metal from the electrolyte solution onto the semiconductor substrate, the metal foil being unconsumed by the electrolyte solution during the electroplating;
- wherein the plastic anode support includes multiple plastic rings arranged in an eccentric pattern where a largest diameter plastic ring of the multiple plastic rings encircles the remaining plastic rings, and a smallest diameter plastic ring of the multiple plastic rings that is encircled by the remaining plastic rings, so that the largest plastic ring encompasses a center of each of the plastic rings.
7 more elements
A method comprising:
- forming an inert non-metallic anode support comprising multiple rings in an eccentric pattern where a largest diameter outermost ring of the multiple rings encircles the remaining rings of the multiple rings, while a smallest diameter innermost ring of the multiple rings is encircled by the remaining rings;
- forming at least one metal foil in a shape matched to a shape of each of the inert non-metallic anode support rings;
- attaching the metal foil to the inert non-metallic anode support to form an anode;
- forming a cathode using a semiconductor substrate;
- immersing the anode and the cathode within an electrolyte solution including indium sulfite, wherein the inert non-metallic anode support is inert with respect to the indium sulfite and the inert non-metallic anode support is not damaged by the electrolyte solution;
- forming a circuit with a current source, the anode and the cathode;
- generating a current through the circuit;
- and
- electroplating a metal from the electrolyte solution onto the semiconductor substrate, wherein the metal foil is not consumed during the electroplating.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.