US 6,646,340 B2Granted

Thermally coupling electrically decoupling cooling device for integrated circuits

AssigneeIntel Corporation

InventorsTimothy L. Deeter, Thomas Marieb, Daniel Murray, Daniel Pantuso, Sarangapani Sista

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Abstract

A thermally coupling electrically decoupling cooling device is described. The cooling device may be thermally disposed between a self-heating electrically conductive line and a semiconductor substrate to cool the line by transferring heat from the line to the substrate while blocking flow of current from the line to the substrate. The cooling device may contain a thermally conductive structure, such as a stack of vias and lines, to conduct heat away from the electrically conductive line, and a current blocking structure, such as a reverse biased diode or a capacitor, to block current flow into the substrate. Specific current blocking structures include a reverse biased diode containing an n-doped region and a p-doped region disposed between the thermally conductive structure and the substrate, and a capacitor containing a dielectric layer disposed between the thermally conductive structure and the semiconductor substrate.

Claims50

Dependent claims

A microprocessor comprising:

a semiconductor substrate containing a transistor;
an electrically conductive line to carry an electrical current associated with the transistor, the line containing an electrically conductive material that has an electrical resistance to convert a portion of the electrical current into heat;
and
a thermally coupling electrically decoupling cooling device disposed between the electrically conductive line and the semiconductor substrate, the cooling device containing:
a thermally conductive structure attached to the electrically conductive line to receive the heat from the electrically conductive line and conduct the heat away from the electrically conductive line by thermal conduction, wherein the thermally conductive structure contains a thermally conductive material having a thermal conductivity greater than that of silicon dioxide, wherein the thermally conductive structure contains at least one via attached to the electrically conductive line and at least a second electrically conductive line attached to the via;
and
a current blocking structure attached between the thermally conductive structure and the semiconductor substrate to receive the heat from the thermally conductive structure and conduct the heat to the semiconductor substrate by thermal conduction, wherein the current blocking structure contains an electrically insulating dielectric layer to block flow of the electrical current carried by the electrically conductive line into the semiconductor substrate, wherein the electrically insulating dielectric layer has a thickness that is between 1-100 nanometers.

4 more elements

A computer system comprising:

a memory;
a bus coupled to the memory;
a microprocessor coupled to the bus containing:
a semiconductor substrate containing a semiconductor device;
an electrically conductive line to carry an electrical current associated with the semiconductor device, the line containing an electrically conductive material having an electrical resistance to convert a portion of the electrical current into heat;
and
a cooling device thermally coupled between the electrically conductive line and the semiconductor substrate to transfer heat from the electrically conductive line to the semiconductor substrate and electrically decoupled from the semiconductor substrate to suppress flow of the electrical current into the semiconductor substrate;
and
a communication device coupled with the bus.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 10/339,134Filed 8 Jan 2003 · division
Priority: 14 Feb 2002
Published: US 2003/0151131 A114 Aug 2003
Granted: 11 Nov 2003
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification3 codes

H10W 40/255
Characterised by their materials: having a laminate or multilayered structure, e.g. direct bond copper [DBC] ceramic substrates
H10W 40/22
Arrangements for cooling: characterised by their shape, e.g. having conical or cylindrical projections
H10W
Generic packages, interconnections, connectors or other constructional details of devices covered by