Influence of the Viscoelastic Properties of the Polyimide Dielectric Coating on the Wafer Warpage

Polyimide is widely used as the dielectric material in wafer level packaging. One potential problem with its application is the warpage and stress generated in the curing process. This paper investigated the material properties of polyimide and its influence on the wafer warpage. The viscoelastic properties of polyimide film were measured and a mathematical model of the properties was developed. Finite element analysis of the wafer warpage was performed and this indicates that the viscoelastic material model gave the best prediction. To better understand the causation of the warpage, curvature evolution of the polyimide-coated silicon wafer during its curing process was measured by a multi-beam optical sensor system. It was found that the warpage was mainly induced by the coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch and that the cure shrinkage of polyimide had little effect. Additionally, the effect of the cooling rate on the wafer warpage was also studied. Both simulation and experiment results showed that a slower cooling rate in the temperature range around the glass transition temperature (T (g)) of polyimide will help to reduce the final wafer warpage.