Circuit module having a substrate, semiconductor chip, and molding material formed by dicing

1. A circuit module comprising:

a wiring substrate having a shape elongated in one direction;

a semiconductor chip mounted on the wiring substrate;

a molding material that molds the semiconductor chip; and

end faces of the molding material that extend along a lengthwise direction of the wiring substrate and intersect with a lateral direction of the wiring substrate, the end faces being formed by dicing performed along end faces of a partial region of the wiring substrate,

wherein the molding material is not cut in a direction substantially perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the wiring substrate, and the wiring substrate has a width that is smaller than a length of the molding material in the lengthwise direction of the wiring substrate.

2. The circuit module according to claim 1 ,

wherein the end faces of the molding material that extend along the lengthwise direction of the wiring substrate and intersect with the lateral direction of the wiring substrate are formed together with the end faces of the partial region of the wiring substrate by dicing after the molding material has been cured.

3. The circuit module according to claim 1 ,

wherein the end faces of the partial region of the wiring substrate and end faces of another region of the wiring substrate are formed by different methods.

4. The circuit module according to claim 1 ,

wherein the end faces of the partial region of the wiring substrate protrude in a widthwise direction of the wiring substrate with respect to the end faces of the other region in the lengthwise direction of the wiring substrate.

5. The circuit module according to claim 1 ,

wherein the semiconductor chip comprises a semiconductor chip that is not encapsulated in a package, and is mounted on the wiring substrate by wire bonding.

6. A method for manufacturing a circuit module according to claim 1 , the method comprising:

(a) preparing a mother board including a plurality of wiring substrates that each have a shape elongated in a first direction and are continuous via a connecting portion in a second direction that is perpendicular to the first direction, and a frame that supports at least connecting portions located at both outermost ends in the second direction of the plurality of wiring substrates;

(b) mounting a semiconductor chip on each of the plurality of wiring substrates;

(c) molding the plurality of semiconductor chips mounted on the plurality of wiring substrates by a molding material that is continuous in the second direction, and heating and curing the molding material; and

(d) after the molding material has been cured, cutting the connecting portion of the plurality of wiring substrates together with the molding material formed on the connecting portion by dicing.

7. The method of claim 5 ,

wherein the step (d) includes cutting the connecting portion of the plurality of wiring substrates together with the molding material formed on the connecting portion by dicing, without cutting the mother board in a region other than the connecting portion of the plurality of wiring substrates.

8. The method of claim 6 ,

wherein the frame of the mother board supports, in addition to the connecting portions located at both outermost ends in the second direction of the plurality of wiring substrates, opposing end portions in the first direction of each of the wiring substrates, and

the method further includes (e) cutting the opposing end portions in the first direction of each of the wiring substrates so as to separate each of the wiring substrates from the frame of the mother board, which is performed after the step (d).