Thermoelectric cooling using through-silicon vias

• Main Authors: Mandal, Sudeep, Graf, Richard S
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 07.08.2018
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES

Structures that include thermoelectric couples and methods for fabricating such structures. A device level and a back-end-of-line (BEOL) interconnect structure are fabricated at a front side of a substrate. A thermoelectric couple is formed that is coupled with the substrate. The thermoelectric couple includes a first through-silicon via extending through the device level and the substrate to a back side of the substrate, a second through-silicon via extending through the device level and the substrate to the back side of the substrate, an n-type thermoelectric pillar coupled with the first through-silicon via, and a p-type thermoelectric pillar coupled with the second through-silicon via. The BEOL interconnect structure includes a wire that couples the first through-silicon via in series with the second through-silicon via.