IC Substrate - What are an ic chips and types of it?

IC chips, English name Integrated Circuit Chip (integrated circuit),  are a large number of microelectronic components (resistors, capacitors, transistors, etc.) formed by the integrated circuit on a plastic base, thus making a chip. It is widely due in the field of electronics, computer industry, it is called a lot of common in the country called integrated circuits, IC, chips, Chip, although the name is not the same, but refers to the same thing.

What types of IC chips are there?

Classified by functional structure

Integrated circuits can be divided into two categories: analog integrated circuits and digital integrated circuits according to their functions and structures.

Analog integrated circuits are used to generate, amplify and process various analog signals (referring to signals whose amplitude changes with time boundaries. For example, audio signals of semiconductor radios, tape signals of VCRs, etc.), while digital integrated circuits are used to generate, amplify and process Various digital signals (referring to signals with discrete values in time and amplitude. For example, audio signals and video signals reproduced by VCD and DVD).

The basic analog integrated circuits include operational amplifiers, multipliers, integrated voltage regulators, timers, signal generators, etc. There are many types of digital integrated circuits. Small-scale integrated circuits have a variety of gates, such as NAND gates, NOT gates, and OR gates. Medium-scale integrated circuits have data selectors, codecs, flip-flops, counters, and registers. Large-scale or very large-scale integrated circuits include PLD (Programmable Logic Device) and ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit).

From the perspective of PLD and ASIC, the distinction between components, devices, circuits, and systems is no longer very strict. Not only that, the PLD device itself is just a hardware carrier, and different circuit functions can be realized by loading different programs. Therefore, modern devices are no longer pure hardware. Software devices and corresponding software electronics have been widely used in modern electronic design, and their status is becoming more and more important. There are many types of circuit components. With the continuous improvement of electronic technology and technology, a large number of new devices continue to appear.The same device also has multiple packaging forms. For example, SMD components have been seen everywhere in modern electronic products. For different use environments, the same device has different industrial standards. Domestic components usually have three standards, namely: civil standards, industrial standards, and military standards. Different standards have different prices. The price of military standard devices may be ten times or more than civilian standards. Industry standards are somewhere in between.

Classified by production process

Integrated circuits can be divided into semiconductor integrated circuits and thin film integrated circuits according to the manufacturing process.

film integrated circuits are classified into thick film integrated circuits and thin film integrated circuits.

Classified by level of integration

Integrated circuits are divided into small-scale integrated circuits (SSI), medium-scale integrated circuits (MSI), large-scale integrated circuits (LSI), very large-scale integrated circuits (VLSI), and ultra-large-scale integrated circuits (ULSI) according to their scale.

According to the different types of conductivity

Integrated circuitscan be divided into bipolar integrated circuits and unipolar integrated circuits according to their conductivity types.

The manufacturing process of bipolar integrated circuits is complicated, and the power consumption is relatively large, which means that the integrated circuits are of TTL, ECL, HTL, LST-TL, STTL and other types. Unipolar integrated circuits have simple manufacturing processes, low power consumption, and are easy to make large-scale integrated circuits. Representative integrated circuits include CMOS, NMOS, PMOS, and other types.

Classified by purpose

Integrated circuit According to the purpose, it can be divided into integrated circuit for TV. Integrated circuits for audio, integrated circuits for video disc players, integrated circuits for video recorders, integrated circuits for computers (microcomputers), integrated circuits for electronic organs, integrated circuits for communications, integrated circuits for cameras, integrated circuits for remote control, integrated circuits for language, integrated circuits for alarms Circuits and various application-specific integrated circuits.

TV integrated circuits include line and field scanning integrated circuits, intermediate amplifier integrated circuits, sound integrated circuits, color decoding integrated circuits, AV/TV conversion integrated circuits, switching power Chinese picture processing integrated circuits, microprocessor (CPU) integrated circuits, memory integrated circuits, etc.

Audio integrated circuits include AM/FM high-intermediate frequency circuits,stereo decoding circuits, audio preamplifier circuits, audio operational amplifier integrated circuits, audio power amplifier integrated circuits, surround sound processing integrated circuits,level drive integrated circuits, and electronic volume control integrated circuits Circuits,delay reverberation integrated circuits, electronic switch integrated circuits, etc.

Integrated circuits for DVD players include system control integrated circuits,video encoding integrated circuits,MPEG decoding integrated circuits,audio signal processing integrated circuits,sound effect integrated circuits,RF signal processing integrated circuits,digital signal processing integrated circuits,servo integrated circuits,and motor drives Integrated circuits, etc.

IC Chip production process

The complete process of chip making includes: chip design, wafer making, package making, cost testing and several other parts, among which the wafer chip making process is especially complicated. The following diagram lets us jointly understand the process of chip production, especially the part of wafer production. First of all, the chip design, according to the needs of the design, the generation of the "pattern".

1.The raw material of the chip wafers, wafers are composed of silicon, silicon is refined by the quartz sand, wafers are silicon to be purified (99.999%), followed by some of the pure silicon made of silicon rods, quartz semiconductors to become the material for the manufacture of integrated circuits, will be sliced is the specific needs of the chip production of the wafers. The thinner the wafer, the lower the cost of production, but the more demanding the process.

2.Wafer CoatingThe wafer coating can resist oxidization and temperature, and the material is a type of photoresist.

3.Wafer lithography development, etching the process uses UV-sensitive chemicals, that is, in the event of UV light will be softened. The shape of the chip can be obtained by controlling the position of the photoresist. A photoresist is applied to the silicon wafer so that it dissolves when exposed to UV light. This is done by applying a first portion of the mask so that the portion under direct UV light is dissolved, and this dissolved portion can then be washed away with a solvent. This dissolved portion can then be washed away with a solvent, so that the remaining portion has the same shape as the mask, which is exactly the effect we want. This gives us the silica layer we need.

4.Admixture of impurities will be implanted in the wafer ions to generate the corresponding P, N semiconductor. The specific process is to start from the exposed area on the wafer, into the chemical ion mixture. This process will change the way the adulterated area conducts electricity so that each transistor can pass, break, or carry data. Simple chips can be made with just one layer, but complex chips usually have many layers, and this is when the process is repeated over and over again, and different layers can be linked together by opening windows. This is similar to the production of PCB boards made of layers of production principles. More complex chips may require more than one layer of silicon dioxide, this time by repeating the photolithography as well as the above process to achieve, the formation of a three-dimensional structure.

5.Wafer testing after the above process, the wafer on the formation of a lattice of grains. Electrical characteristics of each die are tested by means of needle testing. Generally each chip has a large number of grains, the organization of a needle test mode is a very complex process, which requires the production of the same chip specifications as far as possible when the construction of the model of high-volume production. The larger the number of relative cost will be lower, which is why the mainstream chip device cost is a factor.

6.Packaging will be manufactured to complete the wafer fixed, bound pins, in accordance with the needs to be made into a variety of different package forms, which is the same kind of chip kernel can have a different package form of the reason. For example: DIP, QFP, PLCC, QFN and so on. Here is mainly by the user's application habits, the application environment, market forms and other peripheral factors to decide.

7.The last process of chip manufacturing for the test, which can be divided into general testing and special testing, the former is the packaged chip in a variety of environments to test its electrical characteristics, such as power consumption, operating speed, voltage resistance, etc.. The tested chips are divided into different levels according to their electrical characteristics. Special test is based on the customer's special needs of the technical parameters, from the similar parameters of specifications, varieties of some of the chip, to do targeted specialized testing to see if it can meet the customer's special needs to decide whether to design a special chip for the customer. After the general test qualified products labeled with specifications, models and factory date and other identification labels and packaging can be shipped.Chips that do not pass the test are downgraded or rejected depending on the parameters they meet.

IC Chips have a wide range of applications and their main roles are as follows:

Controlling and processing data: chips can be used to control and process a variety of data, including data in electronic devices such as computers, cell phones, and TVs.

Storing data: chips can be used to store data, such as memory chips can save programs and data in computers.

Communication: Chips can be used to realize communication functions, such as communication chips in cell phones can realize wireless communication.

Controlling external devices: Chips can be used to control and drive various external devices, such as chips in automobiles that can control the engine, braking system and so on.

Realize specific functions: Chips can be used to realize various specific functions according to different application requirements, such as sensor chips can sense the temperature and humidity in the environment. In short, the chip is an indispensable core component of modern electronic equipment, and its role covers a variety of aspects such as control, processing, storage, communication and realization of specific functions.

As technology continues to advance and innovate,the performance of IC chips will be further enhanced and the application areas will become more extensive. In the future, we expect to see more innovative designs that will contribute more to solving global problems, advancing science and technology, and promoting human well-being.