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AssigneeNational Semiconductor Corporation
InventorMatthew S. Buynoski
Estimating the term…
A monolithic silicon integrated circuit chip is provided with a conductive passivating coating over the metal bonding pads. The coating is composed of doped polysilicon or metal silicide. Such materials provide a self-passivating, non-corrodable surface capable of forming a conventional eutectic bond to a connecting wire. A moat is etched through this layer outside the confines of the bonding pad so that they can be electrically isolated. Eutectic wire bonds are then made to the coating where they would ordinarily be made to the pad metal. Since the passivating coating fully covers the bonding pad a substantial increase in passivation occurs. If desired the passivating coating can be overcoated with a thin metal layer to facilitate probing of the circuits in wafer form.
In the process for fabricating the bonding pads in monolithic silicon integrated circuit devices located in a wafer wherein the metal bonding pads have been established and overcoated with a first insulating passivation layer that has openings located over the centers of the bonding pads, the steps comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.