Semiconductor chip kerf clear method and resultant semiconductor chip and electronic module formed from the same

A method for forming a plurality of integrated circuit ("IC") chips comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a wafer;
• (b) forming a plurality of IC chips integral with said wafer such that said wafer has a plurality of kerf regions separating active chip regions of said plurality of IC chips, said plurality of kerf regions having a chip metal layer and a transfer metal layer contained therein;
• (c) removing said chip metal layer from said plurality of kerf regions;
• and
• (d) subsequent to step (c), dicing said wafer into separated IC chips such that each separated IC chip contains at least one of said active chip regions and a kerf region of said plurality of kerf regions from which said chip metal layer has been removed, said kerf region being contiguous with a side edge of said separated IC chip;
• and wherein said forming step (b) includes forming the chip metal layer coplanar with the transfer metal layer.

A method for forming an electronic module comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a plurality of integrated circuit ("IC") chips, each IC chip of said plurality of IC chips having an edge surface, a first chip metal layer and a transfer metal lead, said IC chip further including an active region and a kerf region, said kerf region being contiguous with said edge surface, said active region being adjacent to said kerf region, and wherein said first chip metal layer is contained only within said active region and said transfer metal lead is contained within said active region and said kerf region;
• and, thereafter
• (b) stacking said plurality of IC chips to form an electronic module;
• wherein said providing step (a) comprises providing each IC chip with a substrate, said first chip metal layer being disposed between and mechanically coupled to said substrate and to said transfer metal lead;
• and
• wherein said edge surfaces of said plurality of IC chips at least partially define a side surface of the electronic module, said side surface having a first transfer metal lead of a first IC chip of said plurality of IC chips extending theretowards, said method including planarizing said side surface of the module to expose said first transfer metal lead.