US Patent 7642624 Semiconductor device having a guard ring

A multilayer interconnection structure of a semiconductor device includes a first guard ring extending continuously along a periphery of a substrate and a second guard ring extending continuously in the multilayer interconnection structure along the periphery so as to be encircled by the first guard ring and so as to encircle an interconnection pattern inside the multilayer interconnection structure, wherein the first and second guard rings are connected with each other mechanically and continuously by a bridging conductor pattern extending continuously in a band form along a region including the first and second guard rings when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the substrate.