Embodiments include a microelectronic device package structure having an inductor within a portion of a substrate, wherein a surface of the inductor is substantially coplanar with a surface of the substrate. One or more thermal interconnect structures are on the surface of the inductor. A conductive feature is embedded within a board, where a surface of the conductive feature is substantially coplanar with a surface of the board. One or more thermal interconnect structures are on the surface of the conductive feature of the board, where the thermal interconnect structures provide a thermal pathway for cooling for the inductor.

A planar magnetic core includes multiple ferromagnetic layers including multiple hard ferromagnetic bias layers and multiple soft ferromagnetic layers. Each ferromagnetic layer comprises a soft ferromagnetic layer or a hard ferromagnetic bias layer. Each hard ferromagnetic bias layer is a neighboring ferromagnetic layer of at least one soft ferromagnetic layer. The planar magnetic core also includes a plurality of insulating layers, each insulating layer disposed between adjacent ferromagnetic layers. Each ferromagnetic layer has an easy axis of magnetization parallel to a principal plane of the planar magnetic core, where the easy axes of magnetization are aligned. Each hard ferromagnetic bias layer is magnetized to create an in-plane bias magnetic flux through the hard ferromagnetic bias layer in a first direction that is parallel to the easy axis of magnetization and forms a closed path through a neighboring soft ferromagnetic layer in a second direction parallel to the first direction.

A power converter is embodied on a semiconductor substrate member and has a first region with a passive electrical component with a first electrically conductive layer pattern of an electrically conductive material and a second electrically conductive layer pattern of an electrically conductive material deposited on respective sides of the semiconductor substrate member. A trench or through-hole is formed (by etching) in the substrate within the first region, and the electrically conductive material is deposited at least on a bottom portion of the trench or on a sidewall of the through-hole and electrically connected to one or both of the first conductive layer pattern and the second conductive layer pattern. A second region has an active semiconductor component integrated with the semiconductor substrate by being fabricated by a semiconductor fabrication process. There is also provided a power supply, such as a DC-DC converter, embedded the semiconductor substrate member.

A stacked spiral inductor, comprising: a substrate, and multiple stacked insulating layers and inductive metal layers formed on the substrate by means of a semiconductor process. Each inductive metal layer comprises a conductive coil in a shape of a spiral and a through hole area used for connecting two adjacent inductive metal layers. The conductive coils of the inductive metal layers have a common coil center. In two adjacent inductive metal layers, the conductive coil of the lower inductive metal layer is retracted toward the coil center with respect to the conductive coil of the upper inductive metal layer.

Embodiments include an inductor, a method to form the inductor, and a semiconductor package. An inductor includes a plurality of plated-through-hole (PTH) vias in a substrate layer, and a plurality of magnetic interconnects with a plurality of openings in the substrate layer. The openings of the magnetic interconnects surround the PTH vias. The inductor also includes an insulating layer in the substrate layer, a first conductive layer over the PTH vias, magnetic interconnects, and insulating layer, and a second conductive layer below the PTH vias, magnetic interconnects, and insulating layer. The insulating layer surrounds the PTH vias and magnetic interconnects. The magnetic interconnects may have a thickness substantially equal to a thickness of the PTH vias. The magnetic interconnects may be shaped as hollow cylindrical magnetic cores with magnetic materials. The magnetic materials may include ferroelectric, conductive, or epoxy materials. The hollow cylindrical magnetic cores may be ferroelectric cores.

A microelectronic device has bump bonds and an inductor on a die. The microelectronic device includes first lateral conductors extending along a terminal surface of the die, wherein at least some of the first lateral conductors contact at least some of terminals of the die. The microelectronic device also includes conductive columns on the first lateral conductors, extending perpendicularly from the terminal surface, and second lateral conductors on the conductive columns, opposite from the first lateral conductors, extending laterally in a plane parallel to the terminal surface. A first set of the first lateral conductors, the conductive columns, and the second lateral conductors provide the bump bonds of the microelectronic device. A second set of the first lateral conductors, the conductive columns, and the second lateral conductors are electrically coupled in series to form the inductor. Methods of forming the microelectronic device are also disclosed.

Reducing the space occupied by a voltage regulation integrated circuit (IC) that includes an inductor is achieved by implementing the inductor as a 3D inductor having windings formed of conductive elements integrated into a lower substrate, a circuit layer, and an upper substrate, and positioning other components within a core space of the 3D inductor in the circuit layer. The space occupied by the inductor is shared with the other circuit components and with the structural layers of the voltage regulation IC. A voltage regulation IC may be a switched-mode power supply (SMPS) that includes an inductor with a capacitor and/or a switching circuit. The inductor is implemented as upper horizontal traces in an upper substrate, lower horizontal traces in a lower substrate, and vertical interconnects in a circuit layer between the upper substrate and the lower substrate, and the conductive elements form the 3D inductor as a rectangular coil.

Embodiments of the invention include a microelectronic device and methods of forming a microelectronic device. In an embodiment the microelectronic device includes a semiconductor die and an inductor that is electrically coupled to the semiconductor die. The inductor may include one or more conductive coils that extend away from a surface of the semiconductor die. In an embodiment each conductive coils may include a plurality of traces. For example, a first trace and a third trace may be formed over a first dielectric layer and a second trace may be formed over a second dielectric layer and over a core. A first via through the second dielectric layer may couple the first trace to the second trace, and a second via through the second dielectric layer may couple the second trace to the third trace.

The semiconductor structure includes a first die, a second die, a connecting portion, and a through-substrate via. The first die includes a first dielectric layer and a first helical conductor embedded therein. The second die includes a second dielectric layer and a second helical conductor embedded therein, wherein the second dielectric layer is bonded with the first dielectric layer, thereby forming an interface. The connecting portion extends from the first dielectric layer through the interface to the second dielectric layer and interconnects the first helical conductor with the second helical conductor. The through-substrate via extends from the first die to the second die through the interface, wherein the through-substrate via is surrounded by the first and the second helical conductors.

A multi-voltage domain device includes a semiconductor layer including a first voltage domain, a second voltage domain, and an isolation region that electrically isolates the first voltage domain and the second voltage domain in a lateral direction. The isolation region includes at least one deep trench isolation barrier. A layer stack is arranged on the semiconductor layer and includes a stack insulator layer, a first coil arranged in the stack insulator layer, and a second coil arranged in the stack insulator layer and laterally separated from the first coil in the lateral direction. The first and second coils are magnetically coupled to each other in the lateral direction. The first coil includes terminals arranged vertically over the first region and are electrically coupled to the first voltage domain, and the second coil includes terminals arranged vertically over the second region and are electrically coupled to the second voltage domain.