A CHIPS-FIRST MULTICHIP-MODULE IMPLEMENTATION OF PASSIVE AND ACTIVE TEST COUPONS UTILIZING TEXAS-INSTRUMENTS HIGH-DENSITY INTERCONNECT TECHNOLOGY

In this paper, we describe the development and measurement of two sepa rate test structures, or ''coupons'' to assess the performance of Texa s Instruments' ''chips-first'' multichip module technology at high ope rating clock rates, A ''passive'' coupon containing a variety of micro strip and stripline transmission line structures allowed the measureme nt of DC and AC signal amplitude losses in long conductors, as well as assessments of crosstalk and reflections as functions of line dimensi ons and spacings, An ''active'' coupon containing 16 interconnected ga llium arsenide (GaAs) chips of two separate designs allowed the assess ment of this MCM technology's ability to support the propagation of di gital signals at clock and pulse rates above 500 MHz, and the ability of the power and ground plane structures to deliver clean power to the operating components, These comprehensive tests have allowed the deve lopment of design rules for developing future high performance systems using this unique packaging technology, Finally, comments are present ed regarding future directions for this technology to lower manufactur ing costs while preserving the high levels of operational performance demonstrated by these tests.