Fabrication of Metal-on-Glass High-Pitch Adapters Between VLSI Electronics and Semiconductor Sensors by Laser Ablation

High Energy Physics experiments make extensive use of silicon sensors for tracking purposes. The high granularity of the modern detectors makes the connection between the segmented sensor channels and the readout electronics very complex. Furthermore, due to the mismatch between the detector pad pitch and the electronics a direct connection is not possible in most of the cases. A new method for the fabrication of pitch adapters is presented using metal-on-glass technology. In this new method the high-density metal traces are manufactured by means of laser ablation of the metal layer deposited on top of a glass substrate. This new procedure is faster, simpler and cheaper than photolithography for prototyping or low volume production. Different prototypes have been successfully manufactured and tested for electrical conductivity, bondability and metrology. Detectors have been assembled using these pitch adapters and tested in particle beams at CERN.