Leadframe Package

Product Overview

Leadframe packaging is the volume end of advanced packaging. A metal leadframe carries the die, fine wires connect the die pads to the leads, and epoxy mould compound seals the assembly into a body that can be handled, tested and placed on a board. It is a non-hermetic format, and that is the point: it delivers repeatable electrical and thermal behaviour at a cost level that consumer, automotive and industrial programmes can actually run at.

The same engineering team also runs our chiplet packaging and 2.5D/3D programmes. That matters when a module mixes a high-density compute die with power, analog and interface devices, because the interfaces, the thermal budget and the assembly sequence can be planned as one build instead of being split across suppliers who never see each other's drawings.

Most enquiries we receive start with a concrete constraint: a pad ring that no longer fits the QFN outline, a leaded package that is too tall for the housing, or a package that passed prototype and then drifted in yield at volume. Those are engineering questions before they become commercial ones, and, as a chip packaging service provider, we answer them with the people who will build the part.

Package Advantages

• Cost-effective by architecture — Because the body is moulded rather than hermetic, cost stays in the band that automotive, industrial and consumer programmes can carry, while the die still connects to the outside world through a direct wire bond.
• A process tuned for volume — Bonding, moulding and singulation parameters are set for continuous production rather than one-off builds, which is what keeps unit cost and yield stable as quantities climb — the manufacturing half of advanced packaging.
• Bonds that hold under stress — Wire bonding is controlled for consistent strength across the strip, so vibration, temperature cycling and repeated handling do not turn into lifted bonds in the field.
• Encapsulation that seals the die — Epoxy mould compound locks the die and the bond interfaces into one solid body, so test handling and board assembly cannot disturb connections that were already proven.
• Built for the line you already run — Bodies are moulded in standard surface-mount formats, including QFN packaging, so parts load on existing pick-and-place and reflow lines, and the leaded options stay easy to inspect and rework.

Specifications

Custom Tooling & Volume Ramp

1. Send the die, the pad ring and the package drawing you want to hit. If the outline is still open, send the board constraints and the thermal target instead — as a chip packaging service provider we start from the die and work outward, not from a stock list of outlines.
2. Review the design before any tooling is cut. Bond diagram, mould flow, thermal path and the route the part will take through your assembly line are checked against each other, and a conflict comes back to you as a drawing change rather than a failed build. It is the same review discipline we apply on advanced semiconductor packaging programmes, scaled to a moulded outline.
3. Fix the material set. Leadframe alloy, mould compound grade and lead finish are locked at this stage, because changing any of them after qualification means starting the qualification again.
4. Build the first lot and qualify it: wire pull and bond shear, mould inspection, dimensional check, and the reliability tests your programme requires. Results are documented so they can go straight into your qualification file.
5. Ramp to volume against the released drawing, with in-line quality control and lot records from the first production run onward, so a drift is caught while it is still a parameter.
6. Plan replenishment with a rolling forecast. Strip and compound supply are held against your build schedule rather than ordered after each purchase order, which is what keeps a high-volume programme from stalling on material.

Applications

• Automotive control and sensor modules — Control units, sensors and communication modules have to hold their connections through vibration, temperature extremes and humidity. Where the housing leaves little board space, low-profile QFN packaging buys back height without giving up the thermal path.
• Consumer and wearable electronics — Smartphones, wearables and home appliances, where a compact body, mechanical protection and a cost that survives consumer volumes all have to be true at the same time.
• Industrial control and power management — Motor drives, power supplies and control boards that need stable thermal behaviour and a package that loads cleanly on automated surface-mount lines.
• Communication and RF front ends — Front-end modules and transceiver boards, where a short thermal path and low parasitics matter more than sealing a cavity.
• Modules built around advanced die — Where a high-density compute die uses chiplet packaging or 2.5D/3D assembly, the power, analog, interface and protection devices around it are usually carried on moulded leadframe packages, and the whole module is planned as one build.
• Re-sourcing and dual supply — Where a qualified outline is being moved between semiconductor packaging companies, we build to the released drawing so the part drops into the same board position without a PCB change.

Ordering & Delivery

1. Start with a project assessment. Send your design files or an RFQ with the die, the outline you need and the expected volume, and our team comes back with a feasibility view and an outline recommendation. We reply within 24 hours.
2. Agree the commercial terms with your sales contact. Tooling cost, minimum order quantity, lead time and payment terms depend on the outline and the volume band, so they are quoted per programme rather than published as a fixed schedule.
3. Fix the packing format before the first shipment — how the parts are presented, labelled and boxed — so they arrive in the form your line can load without rework at goods-in.
4. Ship under our one-stop export service, with export documentation prepared for the destination market and delivery terms agreed in the quotation.
5. Run volume with a named coordinator and ongoing technical support, so a process question or a schedule change reaches someone who knows the part rather than a general enquiry desk.
6. Schedule any supplier audit before the first volume lot. If your quality team reviews advanced semiconductor packaging suppliers before release, we will prepare the process documentation, inspection records and lot data the audit asks for.

Technical Support & Model Matching

Package selection is rarely a catalogue decision. Our engineers review your die, interconnect and thermal requirements together with your design team before anything is built, and recommend the package format and lead count that suit your board, your test plan and your production volume. Because design simulation, manufacturing and reliability testing sit within the same team, feasibility questions and qualification findings come back with a clear answer. Drawing on more than 30 years of shared packaging expertise, we also help trace yield and reliability problems back to their root cause.

FAQ