Thermocompression Bonding for Microbump Flip-Chip Soldering

For reasons that I will discuss in a post later this year, a common factor that is emerging in the area of copper-pillar microbump 2.5D and 3D joining, is the adoption of thermocompression (TC) bonding for flip-chip flux/microbump soldering. TC bonding is now being predominantly adopted instead of reflow. Some of you may have the same response as I got at iMAPS 2011 from one well-known expert in packaging technology. He looked askance at me when I mentioned TC bonding for flip-chip and retorted: “That’s for bonding wafers, not soldering flip-chips!”. Even good old Wikipedia (at time of writing) seems to have the same problem – basically that the industry usage of the term has moved into the packaging arena.

I spent a little time talking to people in the industry, and on Google, putting together a buyer’s guide for those of you looking at who-is-doing-what in TC bonding. This is just a prototype guide and necessarily incomplete – if I have missed your company out then I apologize, and will add it in: just give me all the details!

Equipment Type	Company Name	URL	Bonding tools	What else they make
Die-bonders	ASM (PT)	http://www.asmpacific.com/asmpt /index.htm	Die bonders, flip-chip bonders	Various others
Die-bonders	BESi	http://besi.com/	Die and flip-chip bonders (Datacon)	Meco (plating systems), Fico (molding / trimming), ESEC
Die-bonders	FineTech	http://www.finetech.de/	Die bonders, flip-chip bonders (offline)	SMT/BGA rework, Laser bar-bonder, VCSEL, Photodiodes, Chip-on-glass, RFID
Die-bonders	Hybond	http://www.hybond.com/	Eutectic die bonders (offline/manual)	Wirebonders / Peg and bar lead diode bonders
Die-bonders	Newport	http://www.newport.com/	Die bonders	Optical and alignment instrumentation, spectrometers
Die-bonders	Palomar	http://palomartechnologies.com/	Die bonders	Ballbonders, stud bumpers, manual die bonders
Die-bonders	Panasonic	http://www.panasonicfa.com/?id=MD-P200	Die bonders	Wirebonders etc etc
Die-bonders	SET	http://www.set-sas.fr/en/	Die bonders, flip-chip bonders	Large device bonders and nano-imprint
Die-bonders	Shibaura	http://www.shibaura.co.jp/e/products/	Die bonders, flip-chip bonders	FEOL products (etching, stripping, coating, jetting) and BEOL
Die-bonders	Toray	http://www.toray-eng.com/sitemap/index.html#semicon	Die bonders, flip-chip bonders	[Semi]Inspection, exposure, encapsulation. COG / COF / FOG bonders
Die-bonders	Westbond	http://westbond.com/machines.htm	Die bonders (offline/manual)	Wirebonders

Wafer bonders	EV Group	http://www.evgroup.com/en	Wafer bonders	Lithography tools
Wafer bonders	Suss Microtech	http://www.suss.com/	Wafer bonders	Mask aligners, nanoimprinters, photomasks, lithography tools

Thanks to Brian Schmaltz of Namics kk for one extra addition to the list.

Cheers! Andy

Semiconductor / Power Semiconductor Assembly