Microelectronic circuits contain various components that produce electromagnetic radiation capable of influencing other circuit components. Switching noise, voltage droop, parasitic inductance, and similar issues can negatively affect circuit performance if left unaddressed. Accordingly, decoupling (or “bypass”) capacitors have been used in microelectronic circuits to decouple one part of an electrical circuit from another so that the negative effect of circuit noise is lessened.
For example, a ceramic capacitor has pairs of electrodes separated by dielectric material. The capacitance C of the capacitor is given by the formula C=(kAn)/d, where k is the dielectric constant of the dielectric material, A is the active area of the electrodes, n is the number of layers (with at least one of the layers consisting of an electrode pair plus the separating dielectric), and d is the thickness of each layer. As may quickly be seen from the formula, one way to increase capacitance is to decrease the dielectric layer thickness. The dielectric layer thickness can be reduced to about 1 micron in current-generation multiple-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs).
For simplicity and clarity of illustration, the drawing figures illustrate the general manner of construction, and descriptions and details of well-known features and techniques may be omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the discussion of the described embodiments of the invention. Additionally, elements in the drawing figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention. The same reference numerals in different figures denote the same elements.
The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the invention described herein are, for example, capable of operation in sequences other than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. Similarly, if a method is described herein as comprising a series of steps, the order of such steps as presented herein is not necessarily the only order in which such steps may be performed, and certain of the stated steps may possibly be omitted and/or certain other steps not described herein may possibly be added to the method. Furthermore, the terms “comprise,” “include,” “have,” and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to those elements, but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.
The terms “left,” “right,” “front,” “back,” “top,” “bottom,” “over,” “under,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing permanent relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the invention described herein are, for example, capable of operation in other orientations than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. The term “coupled,” as used herein, is defined as directly or indirectly connected in an electrical or non-electrical manner. Objects described herein as being “adjacent to” each other may be in physical contact with each other, in close proximity to each other, or in the same general region or area as each other, as appropriate for the context in which the phrase is used. Occurrences of the phrase “in one embodiment” herein do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment.