Provided are: a conductive paste in which sinterability of silver particles the conductive paste can be easily controlled by using silver particles having predetermined crystal transformation characteristics defined by an XRD analysis, and after a sintering treatment, excellent electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity can be stably obtained; and a die bonding method using the conductive paste. Disclosed is a conductive paste which includes silver particles having a volume average particle size of 0.1 to 30 μm as a sinterable conductive material, and a dispersing medium for making a paste-like form, and in which when the integrated intensity of the peak at 2θ=38°±0.2° in the X-ray diffraction chart obtainable by an XRD analysis before a sintering treatment of the silver particles is designated as S1, and the integrated intensity of the peak at 2θ=38°±0.2° in the X-ray diffraction chart obtainable by an XRD analysis after a sintering treatment (250° C., 60 minutes) of the silver particles is designated as S2, the value of S2/S1 is adjusted to a value within the range of 0.2 to 0.8.

A semiconductor wafer stack and a method of forming a semiconductor device is disclosed. The method includes providing a wafer stack with first and second wafers bonded together. The wafers include edge and non-edge regions, and at least one of the first and second wafers includes devices formed in the non-edge region. The first wafer serves as the base wafer while the second wafer serves as the top wafer of the wafer stack, where the base wafer is wider than the top wafer, providing a step edge of the wafer stack. An edge protection seal is formed on the wafer stack, where first and second layers are deposited on the wafer stack including at the top wafer and step edge of the wafer stack. The portion of the first and second layers on the step edge of the wafer stack forms the edge protection seal which protects the devices in the wafer stack in subsequent processing.

A semiconductor wafer stack and a method of forming a semiconductor device is disclosed. The method includes providing a wafer stack with first and second wafers bonded together. The wafers include edge and non-edge regions, and at least one of the first and second wafers includes devices formed in the non-edge region. The first wafer serves as the base wafer while the second wafer serves as the top wafer of the wafer stack, where the base wafer is wider than the top wafer, providing a step edge of the wafer stack. An edge protection seal is formed on the wafer stack, where first and second layers are deposited on the wafer stack including at the top wafer and step edge of the wafer stack. The portion of the first and second layers on the step edge of the wafer stack forms the edge protection seal which protects the devices in the wafer stack in subsequent processing.

A material includes a base resin; a solvent; and a foaming agent and a photosensitizer, and/or a substance that serves as a foaming agent and a photosensitizer.

The present invention addresses the problem of providing a conductive paste that achieves both low resistance and high adhesion strength (die shear strength) of the resulting conductive body after firing.

The present invention provides a conductive paste comprising: (A) copper fine particles having an average particle diameter of 50 nm to 400 nm and a crystallite diameter of 20 nm to 50 nm; (B) copper particles having an average particle diameter of 0.8 μm to 5 μm and a ratio of a crystallite diameter to the crystallite diameter of the copper particles (A) of 1.0 to 2.0; and (C) a solvent.

There is provided an inexpensive bonding material, which can be easily printed on articles to be bonded to each other and which can suppress the generation of voids in the bonded portions of the articles to be bonded to each other, and a bonding method using the same. In a bonding material of a copper paste which contains a copper powder containing 0.3% by weight or less of carbon and having an average particle diameter of 0.1 to 1 μm, and an alcohol solvent, such as a monoalcohol, a diol, a triol or a terpene alcohol, the content of the copper powder is in the range of from 80% by weight to 95% by weight, and the content of the alcohol solvent is in the range of from 5% by weight to 20% by weight.

The sinter-bonding composition contains sinterable particles containing an electroconductive metal. The average particle diameter of the sinterable particles is 2 μm or less and the proportion of the particles having a particle diameter of 100 nm or less in the sinterable particles is not less than 80% by mass. The sinter-bonding sheet (10) has an adhesive layer made from such a sinter-bonding composition. The dicing tape with a sinter-bonding sheet (X) has such a sinter-bonding sheet (10) and a dicing tape (20). The dicing tape (20) has a lamination structure containing a base material (21) and an adhesive layer (22), and the sinter-bonding sheet (10) is positioned on the adhesive layer (22) of the dicing tape (20).

A semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor element that converts DC electric power into AC electric power; a DC terminal that transmits DC electric power; an AC terminal that transmits AC electric power; a sealing member that seals the semiconductor element, at least a part of the DC terminal, and at least a part of the AC terminal; and at least one floating terminal that is arranged between the DC terminal and the AC terminal.

Semiconductor devices, such as vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, and methods for manufacturing the same, are disclosed. The semiconductor devices include contact extensions and electrically conductive adhesive material, such as fusible metal alloys or electrically conductive composites. In some instances, the semiconductor devices further include structured contacts. These components enable the production of semiconductor devices having minimal distortion. For example, arrays of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers can be produced exhibiting little to no bowing. Semiconductor devices having minimal distortion exhibit enhanced performance in some instances.

Provided is a joint structure interposed between a semiconductor element and a substrate, the joint structure including: a Sn phase; Cu alloy particles containing P in an amount of 1 mass % or more and less than 7 mass %; and Ag particles, wherein the Cu alloy particles are each coated with a Cu.sub.6Sn.sub.5 layer, wherein the Ag particles are each coated with a Ag.sub.3Sn layer, wherein the Cu alloy particles and the Ag particles are at least partially bonded to each other through a Cu.sub.10Sn.sub.3 phase, wherein a total of addition amounts of the Cu alloy particles and the Ag particles is 25 mass % or more and less than 65 mass % with respect to the joint structure, and wherein a mass ratio of the addition amount of the Ag particles to the addition amount of the Cu alloy particles is 0.2 or more and less than 1.2.