3D System Integration in a Package for Artificial Intelligence

The connection problem of the early large-scale computers, the tyranny of numbers, was solved by the invention of the von Neumann computer, integrated circuit and solderless connection (Fig.1). However, the advance that has been achieved in all these technologies has made them the victim of their own success, with Moore's Law scaling and connector miniaturization each reaching its limits, and von Neumann bottleneck exacerbating. Furthermore, the adoption of neural network and deep learning for Artificial Intelligence (AI) has once again brought to the forefront the challenges of scale and wiring in building hardwired computers. The solutions can be found in near-field coupling integration technologies - ThruChip Interface (TCI) [1]- [26] and Transmission Line Coupler (TLC) [27]-[36]. TCI, a magnetic coupling technology, enables stacking DRAMs with an SoC to alleviate the von Neumann bottleneck. The same technology also enables stacking SRAMs with a neural network SoC to solve the challenges of scale and wiring in an AI computer. On the other hand, TLC, an electromagnetic coupling technology, enables a contactless connector that overcomes the scaling limits of its electro-mechanical counterpart.