In a new cross-disciplinary effort, researchers have developed a novel approach to attach bonding wires to stacks of memory chips. The new technique, being called a “breakthrough” by its developers, promises to allow chips to be stacked to several times their current 8-chip and 16-chip heights.
At issue is the challenge of precisely bonding wires a fraction of the diameter of a human hair over great distances without their inadvertently coming into contact with their neighbors to create a short circuit. Such a short could destroy one or more of the chips in the stack, rendering the entire stack useless. The mechanical means of attaching these wires, although highly sophisticated, still has significant issues, that limit the economics of higher stacks.
Researchers at the Berea University of Geology (BUG) in Berea, Kentucky, noticed that certain Continue reading “New Memory Bonding Technique Shows Promise”