Co-design of signal, power, and thermal distribution networks for 3D ICs

Heat removal and power delivery are two major reliability concerns in the 3D stacked IC technology. Liquid cooling based on micro-fluidic channels is proposed as a viable solution to dramatically reduce the operating temperature of 3D ICs. In addition, designers use a highly complex hierarchical power distribution network in conjunction with decoupling capacitors to deliver currents to all parts of the 3D IC while suppressing the power supply noise to an acceptable level. These so called silicon ancillary technologies, however, pose major challenges to routing completion and congestion. These thermal and power/ground interconnects together with those used for signal delivery compete with one another for routing resources including various types of through-silicon-vias (TSVs). This paper presents the work on routing with these interconnects in 3D: signal, power, and thermal networks. We demonstrate how to consider various physical, electrical, and thermo-mechnical requirements of these interconnects to successfully complete routing while addressing various reliability concerns.