{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,20]],"date-time":"2026-04-20T19:58:14Z","timestamp":1776715094335,"version":"3.51.2"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,17]],"date-time":"2025-02-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1739750400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>As the trend towards the densification of integrated circuit (IC) devices continues, the complexity of interfaces involving dissimilar materials and thermo-mechanical interactions has increased. Highly integrated systems in packages now comprise numerous thin layers made from various materials. The interfaces between these different materials represent a vulnerable point in ICs due to imperfect adhesion and stress concentrations caused by mismatches in thermo-mechanical properties such as Young\u2019s modulus, coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE), and hygro-swelling-induced expansion. This study investigates the impact of thermal variations on the fracture behavior of three bi-material interfaces used in semiconductor packaging: epoxy molding compound\u2013silicon (EMC\u2013Si), silicon oxide\u2013polyimide (SiO2\u2013PI), and PI\u2013EMC. Using double cantilever beam (DCB) tests, we analyzed these interfaces under mode I loading at three temperatures: \u221220 \u00b0C, 23 \u00b0C, and 100 \u00b0C, under both quasi-static and cyclic loading conditions. This provided a comprehensive analysis of the thermal effects across all temperature ranges in microelectronics. The results show that temperature significantly alters the failure mechanism. For SiO2\u2013PI, the weakest point shifts from silicon at low temperatures to the interface at higher temperatures due to thermal stress redistribution. Additionally, the fracture energy of the EMC\u2013Si interface was found to be highly temperature-dependent, with values ranging from 0.136 N\/mm at low temperatures to 0.38 N\/mm at high temperatures. SiO2\u2013PI\u2019s fracture energy at high temperature was 42% less than that of EMC\u2013Si. The PI\u2013EMC interface exhibited nearly double the crack growth rate compared to EMC\u2013Si. The findings of this study provide valuable insights into the fracture behavior of bi-material interfaces, offering practical applications for improving the reliability and design of semiconductor devices, especially in chip packaging.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym17040520","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,17]],"date-time":"2025-02-17T10:26:12Z","timestamp":1739787972000},"page":"520","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":9,"title":["Impact of Thermal Variations on the Fatigue and Fracture of Bi-Material Interfaces (Polyimide\u2013EMC, Polyimide\u2013SiO2, and Silicon\u2013EMC) Found in Microchips"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Pedro F. C.","family":"Videira","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Renato A.","family":"Ferreira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Payam","family":"Maleki","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (INEGI), Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7168-7079","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alireza","family":"Akhavan-Safar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (INEGI), Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1933-0865","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ricardo J. C.","family":"Carbas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"},{"name":"Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (INEGI), Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Eduardo A. S.","family":"Marques","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Bala","family":"Karunamurthy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Infineon Technologies Austria AG, Siemensstrasse 2, 9500 Villach, Austria"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3272-4591","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lucas F. M.","family":"da Silva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), University of Porto, Dr. Roberto Frias Street, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1150","DOI":"10.1002\/crat.200711001","article-title":"The Czochralski Method\u2014Where we are 90 years after Jan Czochralski\u2019s invention","volume":"42","year":"2007","journal-title":"Cryst. Res. Technol."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Chen, A., and Lo, R.H.Y. (2016). Semiconductor Packaging: Materials Interaction and Reliability, CRC Press. [1st ed.].","DOI":"10.1201\/b11260"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lu, D., and Wong, C.P. (2009). 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