Page 33 - System on Package_ Miniaturization of the Entire System

Intr oduction to the System-on-Package (SOP) Technology 11

• Connectors
• Thermal structures such as heat sinks and thermal interface materials
• Power sources
• System board
Such a single-system package provides all the system functions such as computing,
wireless and network communications, and consumer and biomedical functions in
one single module. Figure 1.8 depicts the historical evolution of the five system
technologies during the last 50 years as well as the expected projection during the next
15 years.

1.5 Five Major System Technologies
The five major system technologies for electronic digital convergence are schematically
illustrated in Figure 1.9a and b:

1. System-on-board (SOB). Discrete components interconnected on system boards.
2. System-on-chip (SOC). Partial system on a single IC with two or more
functions.
3. Multichip module (MCM). Package-enabled horizontal or 2D integration of two
or more ICs for high electrical system performance.
4. Stacked ICs and packages (SIP). Package-enabled 3D stacking of two or more
thinned ICs for system miniaturization.
5. System-on-package (SOP). Best IC and system integration for ultraminiaturization,
multiple to mega functions, ultrahigh performance, low cost, and high reliability.

1.5.1 System-on-Board (SOB) Technology with Discrete Components
The current approach to manufacturing systems involves fabricating the components
separately and assembling them onto system boards, as illustrated previously in
Figure 1.3. The strategy to miniaturize the systems in this traditional approach has been
to reduce the size of each component by reducing the input-output (I/O) pitch, wiring,
and insulation dimensions in each of the layers. But this approach presents major
limitations to achieving digital convergence, as explained earlier. The IC packaging that
is used to provide I/O connections from the chip to the rest of the system is typically
bulky and costly, limiting both the performance and the reliability of the IC it packages.
Systems packaging, involving the interconnection of components on a system-level
board, is similarly bulky and costly with poor electrical and mechanical performance.

1.5.2 System-on-Chip (SOC) with Two or More System Functions
on a Single Chip
Semiconductors have been the backbone of the IT industry, typically governed by
Moore’s law. Since the invention of the transistor, microelectronics technology has
impacted every aspect of human life by electronic products in the automotive, consumer,
computer, telecommunication, aerospace, military, and medical industries by ever-
higher integration of transistors as indicated in Figure 1.9, and at an ever-lower cost per
transistor. This integration and cost path has led the microelectronics industry to believe