Infineon produces 20 micrometer thin silicon power wafer

Record-breaking thin wafer Infineon produces 20 micrometer thin silicon power wafer

2024-11-10 From Susanne Braun | Translated by AI 2 min Reading Time

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Infineon has achieved a breakthrough in producing a silicon thin wafer for power semiconductors, which is just a quarter of the thickness of a human hair—half as thick as the most advanced wafers currently available. This advancement signals a significant step towards miniaturization in electronic components, enabling even smaller and more efficient applications across various industries, from automotive to consumer electronics.

At 20 micrometers, Infineon's ultra-thin silicon wafers are only a quarter as thick as a human hair and half as thick as the most modern wafers currently available, which measure 40-60 micrometers.(Image: Infineon) — At 20 micrometers, Infineon's ultra-thin silicon wafers are only a quarter as thick as a human hair and half as thick as the most modern wafers currently available, which measure 40-60 micrometers.
(Image: Infineon)

In the field of power electronics in particular, the emphasis is on efficiency and economy. For some time now, Infineon Technologies has stood out as a company that focuses on offering efficient solutions that also reduce the energy consumption of applications. And Infineon is now underlining its ambition to set further clear exclamation marks in the field of power electronics with what is probably the thinnest silicon power semiconductor wafer produced.

Infineon’s new ultra-thin silicon wafer is half the thickness of current cutting-edge wafers and just a quarter of the thickness of a human hair. This innovation aims to significantly enhance energy efficiency, power density, and reliability, particularly in power supply solutions for AI data centers and motor controllers. By reducing the wafer thickness, Infineon decreases substrate resistance by 50%, leading to more than 15% less power loss compared to traditional silicon wafers. In AI data centers, where voltage conversion from 230V to below 1.8V is crucial, the vertical trench MOSFET design allows for an exceptionally efficient power supply close to processors, minimizing energy losses and boosting overall performance.

New grinding approach

In order to achieve the brilliant performance of a 20 micrometre thin wafer, the engineers at Infineon had to find a new wafer grinding approach, as the metallization that holds the chip on the wafer is already thicker than 20 micrometres. At the same time, the curvature (wafer bow) and the wafer separation also have a major influence on the back-end assembly processes. Infineon has already qualified the technology with customers and applied it to its Integrated Smart Power Stages (DC-DC converters).

Jochen Hanebeck, CEO of Infineon Technologies, comments on the success as follows: "Infineon's breakthrough in ultra-thin wafer technology is a significant step forward in the field of energy-efficient power solutions and helps us to exploit the full potential of the global trends of decarbonization and digitalization. With this technological masterpiece, we are consolidating our position as an innovation leader in the industry by mastering all three relevant semiconductor materials with Si, SiC and GaN." (sb)

ZF and Infineon have jointly developed and implemented AI algorithms for the development and control of vehicle software as part of the publicly funded EEmotion project. (Image:ZF Group)

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