JPH0243760A - integrated circuit - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable the effective, direct monitoring of integrated circuit temperatures, in particular, the temperatures of integrated circuit ready to be packaged or molded, by a method wherein a temperature monitoring circuit consisting only of one or more diodes is installed on a common substrate. CONSTITUTION:In an integrated circuit wherein one or more circuits 11-14 consisting of passive and active elements are installed on a common substrate 1, at least one temperature monitoring circuit 30 consisting only of one or more diodes 31-33 is installed on the common substrate 1. For example, in the vicinity of a circuit 14 consuming much power in a monolithic integrated circuit, three diodes 31-33 are arranged. The three diodes 31-33 are connected in series for the constitution of a temperature monitoring circuit 30, which is in turn connected to a wiring pad 29 positioned in the vicinity of a chip 1. A constant voltage is supplied to the temperature monitoring circuit 30 consisting of said diodes 31-33, whereby the temperature of that part may be monitored by monitoring the current.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to the structure of an integrated circuit such as a monolithic integrated circuit or a hybrid integrated circuit.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, this type of integrated circuit, such as a hybrid integrated circuit, has been comprised only of main circuits corresponding to desired functions. Furthermore, monolithic integrated circuits are composed of a main circuit and elements for checking the quality of the process, which are placed in a peripheral area away from the main circuit.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In conventional configurations such as those described above, monitoring of the temperature of the integrated circuit must be done using a thermometer or using a thermopure, and therefore the temperature on the integrated circuit must be monitored after the integrated circuit has been packaged or molded. It was not possible to monitor accurately.

[Means to solve the problem]

This invention adds a temperature monitoring circuit consisting only of one or more diodes.

[Effect]

A certain relational expression with temperature as a parameter holds between the voltage applied to the diode and the current, and even if the applied voltage is constant, the flowing current changes if the temperature changes.

Therefore, by applying an appropriate voltage to the diode constituting the temperature monitoring circuit and monitoring the change in current, the temperature of the portion of the substrate where the circuit is arranged can be monitored.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The figure is a block diagram of a monolithic integrated circuit showing one embodiment of the present invention. In the same figure, on top of chip 1,
First to fourth circuits 11 to 14 are formed. Each of these circuits has a specific function depending on the use of this integrated circuit, and is electrically connected to wiring pads 21 to 28 on the periphery of the chip.

Of these, circuit 14 consumes significantly more power than the other three circuits 11 to 13, and therefore the temperature rise in that part has a large impact on whether or not this integrated circuit operates normally. .

In this embodiment, there are three
diodes 31 to 33 are arranged. These diodes are connected in series to form a temperature monitoring circuit 30, and are electrically connected to a wiring pad 29 arranged around the chip.

Here, the relationship between the applied voltage V and current l of the diode is:
It is given by the following formula.

Evidence 1-1-1 (el) where ■: saturation current, k: Boltzmann's constant, g: charge amount of one electron, T: absolute temperature.

Therefore, even if the applied voltage (2) is constant, the flowing current (2) changes depending on the temperature T. Therefore, these diodes 31
By supplying a constant voltage to the temperature monitoring circuit 30 consisting of the circuits 33 to 33 and monitoring the current, the temperature of that portion can be monitored.

In this embodiment, the diodes constituting the temperature monitoring circuit 30 are built on the chip during the integrated circuit manufacturing process, but in the hybrid integrated circuit, they are mounted on the substrate, so that they can be similarly integrated into the integrated circuit. can be incorporated.

Further, although one diode may be used, in this embodiment, a plurality of diodes are connected in series. This increases the detected current, making it less susceptible to noise and enabling more accurate monitoring.

Although the temperature monitoring circuit 30 can be placed anywhere on the substrate constituting the integrated circuit, it is possible to place the temperature monitoring circuit 30 near the circuit or element that consumes the most power as in this embodiment. On the top, it is possible to monitor the area with the highest temperature. In short, it is only necessary to place it in a part where temperature is a problem, and it is not limited to one place.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, the present invention incorporates a temperature monitoring circuit consisting of a diode in an integrated circuit, so that the temperature of the integrated circuit can be directly monitored, and is particularly effective for monitoring the temperature of an integrated circuit to be packaged or molded.

be.

1... Chip, 11-14... Circuit, 30... Temperature monitoring circuit, 31-33... Diode.

Patent applicant: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. Representative patent attorney Yoshiki Hase
Salt 1) Tatsuya

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an integrated circuit in which one or more circuits consisting of passive elements and active elements are mounted on a common substrate, at least one temperature monitoring circuit consisting only of one or more diodes is mounted on the common substrate. An integrated circuit featuring: