PROTOTYPE PACKAGES IN ALUMINUM NITRIDE FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS

Aluminum nitride is an attractive packaging material in situations where heat dissipation and thermal expansion matching are important, for instance, in the packaging of large integrated circuits or of multichip modules. In order to assess the performance of such a material it is necessary to construct prototype packages; however, extensive investigation into material behavior and compatibility is often necessary before the material can be incorporated into standard processing routes. This paper illustrates the way in which many standard processing techniques such as laser cutting, thick and thin film deposition, glassing and soldering can be used with aluminum nitride, and also highlights some of the ways in which material and process compatibilities can be achieved. The viability of such techniques is demonstrated by the production of aluminum nitride prototype packages and substrates using thick and thin film technologies. © 1990 IEEE