Interconnect technologies for the 90's

Mainframe computers have provided the major driving forces for performance oriented interconnect and packaging technologies in the past. Consumer electronic products have driven the low cost of the spectrum. In the 90's, workstations with demands both on performance and price, and high volume peripheral and portable products with demands on price, performance and portability will drive the technologies. Driving towards a common possible set of chip interconnect technologies that are compatible with different substrate technologies will help in meeting the needs of the different market segments. Migration from single chip packages to multichip modules will be limited to applications having compelling performance requirements; multichip modules will become pervasive if test/burn-in and standardization issues of vendor supplied bare chip ICs are addressed and prices are attractive. Paradigm for technology development and access will change-from vertical integration to partnerships and outsourcing.