Interconnect processes

When high-frequency signals flow in a wire, what is the phenomenon called in which current concentrates near the conductor surface and the effective resistance rises?

  1. AThe skin effect
  2. BThe tunnel effect
  3. CThe Hall effect
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Answer: A. The skin effect

At high AC frequencies, currents induced inside the conductor push the current into a thin layer near the surface (the skin depth). The effective cross-section carrying current shrinks, so resistance rises. It is considered in the design of high-frequency wiring, packages and board traces.

  • A. Correct. Current concentrates near the surface.
  • B. The tunnel effect is a particle passing through a barrier.
  • C. The Hall effect is a voltage perpendicular to current in a magnetic field.
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More Interconnect processes questions

  1. What is the design practice called in which active devices and wiring are placed directly beneath the bond pads used for wire bonding and the like?
  2. Which technique deposits a Cu alloy with a small addition of manganese or similar and, through annealing, lets a thin barrier form spontaneously at the interface with the dielectric?
  3. For long, wide wires such as the clock network of a chip running at several GHz, which wire property must be considered in addition to resistance and capacitance?
  4. What is the main reason the wiring material of advanced LSIs was changed from aluminum (Al) to copper (Cu)?
  5. Which correctly describes the damascene process commonly used to form copper wiring?