November 1, 2013. Startup Triton Microtechnologies, a designer and manufacturer of ultra-thin glass interposers that enable advanced semiconductor-packaging solutions, has met 6-month production milestones that have triggered an additional $3.2 million in funding from parent companies Asahi Glass Co. Ltd. (AGC) of Tokyo and nMode Solutions Inc. in Oro Valley, Arizona. Triton will invest the capital to further develop and equip its established manufacturing facility in Carlsbad, CA, where the company is producing its through-glass-via (TGV) interposers for high-density ICs.
“We are using this new funding to address a critical gap in the supply chain for semiconductor packaging,” said Tim Mobley, CEO of Triton. “To this point, glass interposers have not been readily available, but with silicon interposers now nearing their performance limits, Triton is leveraging its TGV technology to provide the global semiconductor industry with smaller, more efficient and more cost-effective packaging solutions for next-generation ICs.”
Founded in December 2012, Triton combines nMode’s interposer technology with AGC’s glass technology and via-hole drilling techniques to produce 2.5-dimensional (2.5D) and three-dimensional (3D) TGV interposers. These products, capable of forming thousands of electrical connections between a silicon chip and a printed circuit board, are needed to create advanced, high-density semiconductor devices in the smallest form factors.
Triton’s manufacturing facility in Carlsbad employs a highly efficient, continuous process capable of producing ultra-thin TGV interposers in high volumes at low cost. High-aspect-ratio via holes are drilled through glass substrates, then filled with a thermally stable copper paste to form high-quality interconnects within the glass wafers. Triton makes interposers with via-hole diameters from 70 to 150 µm and thicknesses of 0.7 mm and below. The company also designs and produces customized solutions to meet customers’ specific applications.