Freestanding multiplayer IC wiring structure
View Patent ↗A dielectric wiring structure and method of manufacture therefor. The wiring structure includes air dielectric formed in a hemisphere. The wiring structure also includes, in embodiments, a method of simultaneously forming a MEMS structure with a transistor circuit using substantially the same steps. The MEMS structure of this embodiment includes freestanding electrodes which are not fixed to the substrate.
1. A wiring structure comprising:
at least one wiring layer including an upper layer residing in an upper wiring plane;
an inner dielectric layer supporting the upper wiring plane;
a top dielectric layer bounding a top of the inner dielectric layer;
at least one etched region of a predetermined shape forming an increased air gap in the inner dielectric layer and covered at a top region by the top dielectric layer,
wherein wires in the at least one wiring layer extend from within the etched region to a neighboring non etched perimeter region of the inner dielectric layer.
2. The wiring structure of claim 1 , wherein the non-etched perimeter region is a thin wall of dielectric and the remaining inner dielectric is etched to form increased air gaps.
3. The wiring structure of claim 2 , wherein the at least one wiring layer includes at least two wiring layers, the at least two wiring layers including a lower layer residing in a lower wiring plane beneath the upper wiring plane.
4. The wiring structure of claim 3 , further comprising:
a gap between the upper wiring plane and the lower wiring plane; and
a plurality of insulator side support walls attaching to a lower wire in the lower layer and extending substantially upward and attaching to a side of an upper wire in the upper layer and extending along a length of travel of the side surface of the upper wire, the plurality of side support walls supporting the upper wire over the gap over the lower wire.
5. The wiring structure of claim 4 , wherein:
the plurality of side support walls span the gap between the upper wiring plane and the lower wiring plane such that a surface of the plurality of side support walls attaching to the side of the upper wire contacts the gap, and
the gap extends along the length of travel of the upper wire parallel to the surface of the plurality of insulator side support walls attaching to the side of the upper wire.
6. The wiring structure of claim 4 , wherein the at least one etched region which of the predetermined shape is selected from sections of a hemisphere or cylinder and are openings which form the plurality of insulator side support walls in non-etched perimeter regions.
7. The wiring structure of claim 1 , wherein the at least one wiring layer is at least three wiring layers, including a top wiring layer above and orthogonal to the upper wiring layer and a lower wiring layer beneath the upper wiring layer and further comprises:
a plurality of insulator plates extending upward from and attached to the upper layer, each of the insulator plates are attached to a side of a wire in the top layer.
8. The wiring structure of claim 1 , wherein the at least one etched region is two or more etched regions which form a section of a hemisphere or a cylinder.
9. The wiring structure of claim 8 , wherein some of the etched regions have a boundary which overlaps with an adjacent one of the etched regions.
10. A wiring structure comprising:
at least two wiring layers including an upper layer residing in an upper wiring plane and a lower layer residing in an lower wiring plane;
a gap between the upper wiring plane and the lower wiring plane; and
a plurality of insulator side support walls formed by an array of openings in a dielectric, the plurality of insulator side support walls attaching to a lower wire in the lower layer and extending substantially upward and attaching to a side surface of an upper wire in the upper layer and extending along a length of travel of the side surface of the upper wire, the plurality of side support walls spanning the gap between the upper wiring plane and the lower wiring plane and remotely supporting the upper wire over the gap and the lower wire within the openings.
11. The wiring structure of claim 10 , further comprising at least one hemispherical or cylindrical etched region forming an air gap, the at least one hemispherical etched region forming the openings in the plurality of side support walls.
12. The wiring structure of claim 11 , wherein the upper wiring layer includes more than one upper wire, at least one of the more than one upper wire extends into the hemispherical or cylindrical etched region.
13. A wiring structure comprising:
first and second wiring layers;
each wire of the first and second layers having a top, a bottom and sides;
an etched region arranged between the first and second wiring layers;
the etched region comprising insulator side support walls and air gap openings;
the insulator side support walls having one end attached to the sides of the wires of the first wiring layer and another end attached to the sides of the wires of the second wiring layer,
wherein the side support walls span between the first and second wiring layers and support the wires of the first wiring layer over the air gap openings.
14. The wiring structure of claim 13 , wherein the etched region comprises two or more etched regions which form a section of a hemisphere or a cylinder.