Design rule development for microwave flip-chip applications

This paper presents a novel experimental approach for the analysis of factors to be considered when designing a flip-chip package. It includes the design of an experiment and statistical analysis of the outputs and uses both test-structure measurements and full-wave simulation techniques in the 1-35-GHz frequency range. The most significant factors are found to be, from the most to least important, the length of the area where the device and substrate overlap (referred to as conductor overlap), the bump diameter, and the width of the coplanar-waveguide transmission-line launch. These results are valid for conductor overlaps between 300-500 μm. For a lower value (120 μm), the significance level of the overlap decreases and the bump height also becomes significant. Test-structure measurements in the 120-200-μm overlap range validate this result and demonstrate the decrease in the significance level. The substrate thickness in the 10-25-mil interval is found to be statistically insignificant, therefore, it can be eliminated from further analysis. This approach provides a foundation for development of a set of design rules for RF and microwave flip-chip similar to RF integrated-circuit design rules