AUSTIN, TX – The growth of flip chip and wafer level packaging is a bright spot in the industry, says researcher TechSearch International. The firm projects a compound growth rate of more than 14% for flip chip units and 14% for WLPs between 2007 and 2012.
 
The drivers for flip chip continue to be performance and form factor. The use of flip chip for a variety of wireless products will contribute to the growth in 2009. An increasing number of suppliers of ASICs, field programmable gate arrays, DSPs, chipsets, graphics and microprocessors are expanding use of flip chip with solder bumps and copper pillars in package. Flip-chip-on-board continues to be found in automotive electronics, hard disk drives and watch modules. Many companies are planning to use micro bumps through silicon via products, according to TechSearch. 
 
The growth in WLPs is driven by increased demand for thinner, lighter-weight portable products, but WLPs are adopted for both form factor and performance reasons. WLPs have typically been used for low pin count (≤50 I/O) small die size applications, including analog devices such as power amplifiers and battery management devices, MOSFETs, image sensors, controllers and integrated passives. However, WLPs are now an option for larger die sizes with higher pin counts (≥100 I/O), says the firm.