Integrating passive components into substrates is seen by both military and commercial organizations as a key enabling technology for next generation electronics. NEMI (National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative) projects that by 2001, 20% of the total resistors and capacitors needed will be integrated passives. The proposed program will therefore focus on developing widely applicable processes for incorporating passives into organic MCM-type packages. Integrated multilayer substrates will be built in a fully additive process using photodefineable polymeric dielectrics. The photopatterned dielectric will serve to narrowly define the dimensions of the integrated passive components. The approach is versatile in that it can employ a variety of passive and dielectric materials and is compatible with microvia technology. Only equipment that is already well-established in board and assembly houses will be used in order to obviate technology diffusion barriers. Apart from reduction of size, weight, power and cost factors, the development will eventually enable higher speed products, by providing termination and decoupling physically closer to drivers of high-speed signals. The current limit of signal speed using discrete resistors and capacitors is .5 GHz. Phase I will demonstrate feasibility by designing and building an MCM-prototype through cooperation with the Air Force to meet current needs.
