High-Speed Design and Broadband Modeling of Through-Strata-Vias (TSVs) in 3D Integration

Through-strata-via (TSV) technology emerges as the key technology to enable 3D integration. In this paper, 3D electromagnetic field solvers and analytic circuit simulators are employed to study and model TSV electrical performance. Performance of simple TSV structure is analyzed in the time domain and frequency domain. Performance impacts of various TSV configurations are evaluated. A broadband TSV equivalent circuit model is developed for 3D circuit design. Key results include: 1) excellent TDR/TDT behavior and wide open eye diagram with ultra low bit error rate can be achieved with a given TSV configuration; 2) TSV performance depends on TSV configurations (e.g., circular, rectangular, square, tapered, and annular shapes as well as their scaling), but a wide range of different TSV configurations can be optimized with acceptable TSV performance; and 3) broadband TSV equivalent circuit models can be established and used for 3D circuit design with electronic design automation tools.