Method of making a chip carrier with terminating resistive elements

USRE34395E · kind E · reissue

Assignee

• Cray Research, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Eugene F. Neumann · Chippewa Falls, US
• Melvin C. August · Chippewa Falls, US
• James N. Kruchowski · Eau Claire, US
• Stephen Nelson · Chippewa Falls, US
• Richard R. Steitz · Chippewa Falls, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 11, 1991
• Grant date: Oct 5, 1993
• Expiry date: Dec 11, 2011

Classification

• Technology area (CPC —): General

Abstract

A generic chip carrier is described which includes, as integral parts, a voltage bus and a plurality of terminating resistors connected between the voltage bus and signal traces on the carrier. The voltage bus wraps around the chip carrier, thus providing a large area of metal. Through the selective use of the terminating resistors, the generic carrier can be customized for a particular type of integrated circuit, i.e., source or destination termination of signals. A signal trace may be customized by "opening" the terminating resistor with a current spike applied by a standard electrical probe. Spare bonding pads and terminating resistors are placed at intervals about the periphery of the carrier as insurance against defective or mistakenly removed terminating resistors.