IC Die Photos
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IC Die Photos
Here a few shots of IC's taken from a ~2006 Apple webcam. The first is I think a voltage regulator chip that was on the back of the CCD board. The photo is a stitch of ~20 images the chip is ~3mm x1.5mm
I really like the symmetry on this die, Some detail is lost in the shrinking and compressing to fit. The full size image is here
http://vintageteardown.com/wp-content/u ... 43mm-1.jpg
This is a 20x objective image of an area showing the Bipolar transistors
This is a Sony D2450 the timing generator used for the CCD, the die is ~4mm on a side, and this was 46 images stitched
Full size version is here
http://vintageteardown.com/wp-content/u ... 3.85mm.jpg
and this is a image stack (5 images in Zerene PMax) taken with an 80x objective
I like looking at the different die and seeing different layout techniques, the processes used and trying to identify circuit functions. I recently started a blog to chronicle the stuff I am looking at www.vintageteardown.com (I hope its alright to mention it here, it is not a commercial blog).
I really like the symmetry on this die, Some detail is lost in the shrinking and compressing to fit. The full size image is here
http://vintageteardown.com/wp-content/u ... 43mm-1.jpg
This is a 20x objective image of an area showing the Bipolar transistors
This is a Sony D2450 the timing generator used for the CCD, the die is ~4mm on a side, and this was 46 images stitched
Full size version is here
http://vintageteardown.com/wp-content/u ... 3.85mm.jpg
and this is a image stack (5 images in Zerene PMax) taken with an 80x objective
I like looking at the different die and seeing different layout techniques, the processes used and trying to identify circuit functions. I recently started a blog to chronicle the stuff I am looking at www.vintageteardown.com (I hope its alright to mention it here, it is not a commercial blog).
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Here you goChrisR wrote:
I think I can guess transistors and resistors, but I for one would like to see a few components pointed out, to be sure, if that would be possible?
What's the diffusion used for resistors?
There are several diffusions used to form the emitter, base, collectors regions of transistors, some are "re-used" to form resistors.
In the other chip this is a CMOS process and the image is an array of MOSFETS
Gary that's great thanks. They will go well, on the classroom wall, with some of Beatsy's recent big slice images .
Why are some of the emitters so big? Emitter-follower so that's where the power gets dissipated?
Why are some of the emitters so big? Emitter-follower so that's where the power gets dissipated?
Chris R
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That's why I try to look at just vintage electronics. With any (digital) chip from the last 10 years in an optical microscope all you scan see is rows of Copper power/ground routing (Which these days is the 10th or even the 12th layer of metal!).pwnell wrote:Very cool. These are large components... Nice to see them - unlike today's modern GP102 based systems (nVidia GPU) with 12 billion transistors - probably only an electron microscope can reveal any individual component details.
For a very modern die like the nVidia GPU, at the transistor level even a SEM can barely resolve the structures in plan view, In a cross-section to properly resolve the structure even a SEM is insufficient, a TEM is required to properly image the transistor structure (With some sophisticated/complicated processes to thin the sample to ~10um suitable for imaging)
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It's to do with current crowding phenomenom. The emitter doping layer is very thin, and conduction occurs at the edge of the junction, to maximize the current flow you need to maximize the emitter circumference. (Well that's what I think it is )ChrisR wrote:Why are some of the emitters so big? Emitter-follower so that's where the power gets dissipated?