Patent Applications Reveal Apple's Research Into 3D Chip Packaging

[wizard]

I'm really surprised these are patentable. I worked in microelectronics for the Gov't since the early 80's and National Semi, Fairchild, TI, and others all had ideas for stacked die, flipped chips, multiple die per package ICs, etc so not sure what's new and novel without digging into it I guess. Manufacturing wasn't up to the task back then and must be they never patented the ideas, or they expired.

if the patents expired you oculnd't patent the same technology again. In any event you kinda answered your own question here, the technology in the 1980 was up to doing what TSMC is doing today. IF they patent a technique to implement a tech, such as stacked dies, and nobody else has used that method before then you have something to patent..

The article si a bit misleading though. Even the tech TSMC uses in current Apple chips could save power over alternative designs that use off package interfacing. If you put the memory in package you can do so without the need to use high power drivers to handle off chip inductance issues.
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Keep in mind these are applications, not granted patents. It’s possible that none are approved. This is more an introspective to the technologies they’re investigating.

The final answer lies in the details. There are many approaches to manufacturing these sorts of packaging techniques. Note the technique of manufacturing is more likely to be the patent-able part of the application.