Substrate, First Conductor Layer, Microelectronic Hybrids

Object Details

Summary: This artifact is an engineering test sample demonstrating an early step in the construction of a microelectronic hybrid, a specialized device combining electrical components and circuits arranged in layers on top of an alumina wafer.; Each layer consisted of three sublayers: a conducting sublayer composed of circuits; an insulating sublayer; and a "via" sublayer that provided connections between adjoining layers. In this artifact, the grey lines indicate where a special machine should deposit gold onto the wafer to create a conducting sublayer.; The number of layers in a device ranged from three to eight, depending on its function. A completed hybrid was an ingenious puzzle in which the various layers were integrated through as many as several thousand connections.; Such hybrids were essential components on some types of science and communications satellites in the 1980s and 1990s. Lockheed Martin donated this artifact to the Museum in 1998.

Materials: Overall: Alumina Silicate Ceramic, Copper, Paper, Adhesive, Ink
Dimensions: Overall (Substrate Layer): 1/16in. x 2 5/16in. x 2 5/16in. (0.2 x 5.87 x 5.87cm); Overall (Paper Label): 6.99 x 1.59cm (2 3/4in. x 5/8in.)

National Air and Space Museum

GUID (Link to Original Record): http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/nv981ac4c65-852d-4469-ba61-d820f559ab00