JP2681619B2 - Probe device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to electrical characteristics of an object to be inspected such as a semiconductor wafer on which a plurality of semiconductor devices are formed and a glass substrate on which a pixel driving circuit constituting a liquid crystal display device is formed. A probe device for measuring
In particular, the present invention relates to a probe card holder in a probe device, a probe card holding structure, and a method for adjusting the parallelism of a probe needle tip with respect to the object to be inspected.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, a large number of semiconductor devices are formed on a semiconductor wafer by using a precise photo transfer technique or the like.
Thereafter, the wafer is cut for each semiconductor device. In the process of manufacturing such a semiconductor device, test determination of electrical characteristics of a semi-finished semiconductor device is conventionally performed using a probe device in a state of a semiconductor wafer, and as a result of the test measurement, it is determined that the semiconductor device is non-defective. Only those that have been sent are sent to a post-process such as packaging to improve productivity.

The above-mentioned probe apparatus has a wafer mounting table which is movable in XYZ-θ directions. On the wafer mounting table, a large number of probes corresponding to electrode pads of a semiconductor device are provided. A probe card with a needle is fixed by a suitable probe holder. At the time of measurement, an object to be inspected such as a semiconductor wafer is mounted and fixed on the wafer mounting table, the wafer mounting table is driven, a probe needle is brought into contact with an electrode of a semiconductor device, and a tester is connected through the probe needle. It is configured to perform test measurements.

In such a probe device, the contact between the probe card and the tester has recently been made at an electrode land portion connected by an electric lead wire corresponding to each probe needle arranged on the probe card. This is performed by a pogo contact that presses a contact pin (pogo pin) that is elastically biased. By the way, in order to obtain a contact between, for example, 100 probe needles and a tester at the time of inspection, if a pressure of about 10 g is applied to each probe needle, it is necessary to apply a pressing force of 1 kg to the entire probe card. is there.

In particular, the number of probe needles required for testing one chip tends to increase with the increase in the degree of integration of semiconductor devices such as CPUs of supercomputers. Recently, 1000 to 2000 probe needles have been set up. The installed probe card has been required in the semiconductor manufacturing industry. They may be erected, for example, in a 2 cm × 2 cm space. In such a case, a pressing force of 10 kg to 20 kg is applied to the entire probe card, so that the probe card is distorted in the Z direction in accordance with the pressing force, and the probe needle is pressed at a uniform pressure and a uniform parallelism. It is impossible to contact the object to be inspected at a time, and a precise inspection cannot be performed. For this reason, some measures have been taken to improve the distortion resistance of the probe card itself, but this is also limited, and some countermeasures are required.

Further, recently, a method of heating the semiconductor wafer from room temperature to about 150 ° C. by an appropriate heating means by a mounting table on which the semiconductor wafer is mounted and performing electrical characteristics of the semiconductor wafer at a high temperature is also practiced. In case of such high temperature measurement,
Compared to the probe card itself, a metal member that is easily deformed by heat, such as a probe card holder made of stainless steel or aluminum, is greatly distorted, and the probe needle cannot contact the inspected object with uniform pressure and uniform parallelism. , I cannot carry out a precise inspection. Therefore, it is required to improve the strain resistance of the probe card holder also for high temperature measurement.

[0007]

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems of the conventional probe apparatus, and in the case of performing high temperature measurement for inspecting an object to be inspected in a high temperature state. Even if it is, it is possible to correct the distortion of the probe card holder itself, and therefore it is possible to perform precise measurement, and in particular, press force is applied to the probe card by pogo pins etc. at the time of measurement. Even in such a case, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved probe card holder and probe card holding structure capable of reinforcing the strength of the probe card and avoiding the distortion in the Z direction.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention of claim 1 provides a probe needle that electrically contacts an object to be inspected to measure its electrical characteristics, and the probe needle to be inspected. In a probe device including a probe card having a guide means for guiding the probe card and a probe card holder for holding and fixing the probe card at a predetermined measurement position of the probe device, It is characterized in that a hole is provided along the circumferential direction of the probe card holder so as to alleviate the stress concentration applied to the card holder.

According to the second aspect of the invention,
Electrically contact an object to be inspected and measure its electrical characteristics
Guide the probe needle and its probe needle to the object to be inspected
And a probe card having guide means for
Holds the probe card in place on the probe device
A probe with a probe card holder for fixing
The probe device is added to the probe card holder during measurement.
The probe card holder to reduce stress concentration.
It is characterized in that a groove portion is provided along the direction.

According to the invention described in claim 3,
Electrically contact an object to be inspected and measure its electrical characteristics
Guide the probe needle and its probe needle to the object to be inspected
And a probe card having guide means for
Holds the probe card in place on the probe device
A probe with a probe card holder for fixing
The probe device is added to the probe card holder during measurement.
Thermal expansion of the probe card holder to compensate for
Characterized by combining materials with different tension
doing.

According to the invention described in claim 4,
Inspect the probe needle for measuring the electrical characteristics of the inspection target
A probe card having guide means for guiding the user
For holding and fixing the
Equipped with probe card holder, probe card holder
Is located near the backside of the probe card.
First part for supporting the upper part of the probe and the probe car
The guide hand at the engaging portion provided around the guide means of the guide.
Second for engaging the step and supporting the probe card upwards
And the probe card holder on the top plate of the probe device.
And a projecting part to which the top can be attached.
Parallelism of the first engagement surface with the robe card holder, and
The second engagement surface between the guide means and the probe card holder is flat.
By adjusting the travel, the probe needle tip pair
A probe configured to adjust the parallelism to the elephant
In the device, add to the probe card holder during measurement
Circumference of the probe card holder to relieve stress concentration
It is characterized by having holes along the direction.

According to the invention described in claim 5,
Inspect the probe needle for measuring the electrical characteristics of the inspection target
A probe card having guide means for guiding the user
For holding and fixing the
Equipped with probe card holder, probe card holder
Is located near the backside of the probe card.
First part for supporting the upper part of the probe and the probe car
The guide hand at the engaging portion provided around the guide means of the guide.
Second for engaging the step and supporting the probe card upwards
And the probe card holder on the top plate of the probe device.
And a projecting part to which the top can be attached.
Parallelism of the first engagement surface with the robe card holder, and
The second engagement surface between the guide means and the probe card holder is flat.
By adjusting the travel, the probe needle tip pair
A probe configured to adjust the parallelism to the elephant
In the device, add to the probe card holder during measurement
Circumference of the probe card holder to relieve stress concentration
It is characterized by having a groove along the direction.

Further , according to the invention described in claim 6,
Inspect the probe needle for measuring the electrical characteristics of the inspection target
A probe card having guide means for guiding the user
For holding and fixing the
Equipped with probe card holder, probe card holder
Is located near the backside of the probe card.
First part for supporting the upper part of the probe and the probe car
The guide hand at the engaging portion provided around the guide means of the guide.
Second for engaging the step and supporting the probe card upwards
And the probe card holder on the top plate of the probe device.
And a projecting part to which the top can be attached.
Parallelism of the first engagement surface with the robe card holder, and
The second engagement surface between the guide means and the probe card holder is flat.
By adjusting the travel, the probe needle tip pair
A probe configured to adjust the parallelism to the elephant
In the device, add to the probe card holder during measurement
Thermal expansion of probe card holder to compensate for thermal displacement
Characterized by the combination of materials with different rates
ing.

[0014]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the professional
Stress due to thermal expansion or contraction applied to the card holder
Concentration is provided along the circumference of the probe card holder.
By absorbing as elastic deformation by the hole
Can be relaxed. As a result, the probe card is retained
The thermal displacement of the tool is reduced and the occurrence of distortion can be suppressed.
Therefore, it is possible to hold the probe card in the desired state.
Wear. That is, for example, the probe needle is preset
The amount of overdrive is
Perform an accurate inspection because it can be touched
Can be.

Further , according to the invention of claim 2,
The stress concentration applied to the probe card holder at a fixed time
The groove provided along the circumferential direction of the sleeve card holder
Can be relaxed. Therefore, the probe card
The probe card is
Can be held in the desired state, and probe needle and inspected
The contact with the object can be performed uniformly and with high accuracy.

According to the invention described in claim 3,
Use materials with different thermal expansion coefficients to compensate for thermal displacement at regular times.
With the combination of probe card holder,
The heat transferred from the object under test through the probe needle
Can cancel out the deformation that occurs in the probe card.
You. That is, for example, a probe card holder has a multilayer structure.
As the upper layer, a material with a large coefficient of thermal expansion in the circumferential direction is used.
By using the probe card holder
Tal and its bimetallic effect makes it possible to respond by heat conduction.
Displace the probe card holder to compensate for the force concentration.
To offset the deformation of the probe card
can do. As a result, the probe card holder and
And probe card distortion can be suppressed.
Make sure that the lobe needle and the object to be inspected are contacted accurately and reliably.
Can be.

According to the invention described in claim 4,
Adjusting the parallelism of the first engagement surface and the parallelism of the second engagement surface
This allows the probe needle tip to be flat against the object to be inspected.
A probe device configured to adjust the travel
Stress concentration on the probe card holder during measurement
Are provided along the circumferential direction of the probe card holder.
It can be relaxed by the holes. Therefore, when measuring
Even if there is a temperature difference between the first and second engaging surfaces
There is no distortion and the probe needle is leveled on the object to be inspected.
It is possible to contact them in a single and desired state.

According to the invention of claim 5, the contract
Object to be inspected at the tip of the probe needle as in the invention according to claim 4
Probe device configured to adjust the parallelism to
The probe card holder during measurement.
Equipped with force concentration along the circumference of the probe card holder
It can be relaxed by the groove portion formed. Therefore, the measurement
Sometimes the first and second engaging surfaces are not distorted and
Accurate inspection can be performed.

According to the invention of claim 6, the contract
Inspecting the tip of the probe needle as in the invention according to claim 4 or 5
A professional configured to adjust the parallelism to the subject.
In the same way as the invention according to claim 3,
Use materials with different thermal expansion coefficients to compensate for thermal displacement at regular times.
Composed in combination, ie bimetallic, for example
With the configured probe card holder, the probe car
It is possible to offset the deformation that occurs in the cord. As a result,
No distortion occurs on the first engaging surface and the second engaging surface.
Therefore, the desired inspection can be performed.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A probe card holder and a probe card holding structure constructed according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description will be simplified. First, in order to facilitate understanding, the configuration and operation of the entire probe device will be schematically described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 1, a main stage 101 is provided substantially at the center of the probe device 100. A mounting table 103 for mounting and fixing a semiconductor wafer 102 is mounted on the main stage 101. This mounting table 103 is a Z-direction and θ-direction stage 103
A, X direction stage 103B and Y direction stage 10
3C, and is configured to be movable in a desired direction on the main stage 101. Above the mounting table 103, a probe assembly 104 described later is provided.
Are provided so as to face the semiconductor wafer 102. Although not shown, an alignment unit is provided on the near side of the center of the probe device 100. The alignment unit is provided with a camera or the like as an image recognition device for alignment. When performing alignment, the mounting table 103 is moved to a position below the camera.

On the right side of the probe device 100 in the drawing, an autoloader 1 for loading and unloading the semiconductor wafer 102.
05 is arranged, and the probe assembly 10
Each of the exchanges 106 for exchanging 4 is provided.

In the autoloader 105, a wafer cassette 107 that accommodates a large number of semiconductor wafers 102 at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction is replaceably arranged on a cassette mounting table 108. This wafer cassette 107
A loader stage 109 that can move in a horizontal plane and a wafer handling arm 110 that can be driven by a Y-direction driving mechanism and a Z-direction elevating mechanism (not shown) are provided between the mounting table 13 and the mounting table 13.

When the semiconductor wafer 102 is subjected to the probe inspection by the probe assembly 104, the semiconductor wafer 102 is transferred to the vicinity of the mounting table 103 by the loader stage 109 and mounted on the mounting table 103 by the handling arm 110. Fixed. Thereafter, a probe needle described later of the probe assembly 104 positioned at a predetermined position is brought into contact with a predetermined contact point on the semiconductor wafer, and an inspection result is transmitted to a tester 60 via a pogo pin ring 50 described later. In, the quality of the inspection target is determined. After the inspection, the semiconductor wafer 102 is moved by the handling arm 110 to the loader stage 10.
Then, the wafer is transferred to the wafer cassette 107 by the loader stage 109 again.

In the exchange 106, the probe card 1
0 is attached to the probe card holder 30 and the probe card assembly 104
A plurality of the probe card assemblies 1 are housed at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction, and can be replaced with a probe card assembly 104 installed in the main body of the probe device 100 as needed.

If necessary, a monitoring device 112 such as a microscope or a television camera can be installed on the upper part of the tester 60 arranged on the upper part of the probe device 100. It is also possible to configure so as to monitor the semiconductor wafer located below and the tip of the probe needle of the probe card 10 through an opening formed in the central portion of the probe card holder 10 and the probe card holder 20. In addition, as another method of monitoring the probe needle, an upward camera may be provided on a mounting table on which an object to be inspected is mounted for alignment.

Next, the structure of the probe card 10 for probe-inspecting an object to be inspected will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 4. The probe card 10
A substantially disc-shaped printed circuit board 11, a probe needle 12, and a guide portion 1 for guiding the probe needle 12 to an object to be inspected.
3 is comprised. As shown in FIG. 2, the probe needle 12 is made of a conductor such as gold (Au) or tungsten (W), and the portion 12A is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the object to be inspected. As will be described later, the tip 12B of the needle slightly moves in a horizontal direction on the mounting table on which the substrate to be inspected is mounted, so that the oxide film on the surface of the semiconductor wafer is scratched and the predetermined contact point P is reached.
It is configured to contact. The probe needle 12 is bent substantially parallel to the upper surface of the printed circuit board 11 at the portion 12C protruding from the upper surface of the printed circuit board 11 toward the outer periphery of the substrate,
At a point 19, the wiring is buried in the printed circuit board 11 and connected to a pogo contact land 20 to be described later. In the example shown, the probe needle is 1
Although the probe card 10 is buried in the probe card 10 in 2D, wiring can be provided on the back surface side of the probe card 10 to facilitate the work.

Printed circuit board 1 of the probe card 10
The guide portion 13 for guiding the probe needle 12 disposed on the back surface of the first block 1 includes an upper block 13A and an intermediate block 1.
3B and a lower block 13C. A needle fixing resin 14 is arranged in the center of the upper block 13A, and the needle fixing plate 1 is provided on the lower surface of the needle fixing resin 14.
5 is attached. A hole corresponding to the probe needle is formed in the needle fixing plate, and the needle is positioned and fixed in the hole.

The cavity portion 1 is provided at the center of the intermediate block 13B.
6A, and an upper guide plate 17 is attached to the lower end of the cavity 16A. This upper guide plate 1
8 is also provided with a hole corresponding to the probe needle, and the needle is positioned and fixed in the hole. As shown in FIG. 3 (b), the probe needle 12 is to be inspected between the cavity portion 16A provided between the needle fixing plate 15 and the upper guide plate 17, such as a semiconductor wafer. As the tip 12B of the probe needle is pressed against the tip 102, the tip 12B rises vertically, and the body of the probe needle between the needle fixing plate 15 and the guide plate 17 is configured to be elastically bent. .

A cavity portion 16B is also provided in the center of the lower block 13C, and a lower guide plate 18 is attached to the lower end of the cavity portion 16B. The lower guide plate 18 is also provided with a hole corresponding to the probe needle, and the needle is positioned and fixed in the hole. The probe needle is located between the upper guide plate 17 and the lower guide plate 18, and as shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b), the tip of the probe needle is attached to the inspection object 102 such as a semiconductor wafer. 12B
Is pressed and guided by upper and lower guide plates 17 and 18 so as to be movable up and down.

In the above example, the description was given in the context of a so-called vertical needle type probe card in which the probe needles are erected in the vertical direction, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration.
The present invention, like the conventional device, contacts the test object with the tip of the probe needle arranged obliquely to the test object from the front or back surface of the card as in the conventional device,
The present invention is also applicable to a so-called horizontal needle type probe card and a holder for the probe card. Furthermore, the present invention can be similarly applied to a rubber-type probe card using conductive rubber or a membrane-type probe card using a bump film and their holders.

The probe card 1 configured as described above
FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the ASIC 1 with logic and highly integrated ASI.
When a semiconductor is highly integrated, such as a C chip or a CPU chip of a supercomputer, or when a plurality of 16MDRAM chips are required to be simultaneously contacted, the probe card 11 has a large number, for example, thousands of probes. Needle 1
2 are arranged. Therefore, the surface area of the probe card 11 is concentric with the opening area 21 as a center, a needle holder area (A) where the probe needles 12 are erected substantially perpendicular to the semiconductor wafer, and a portion 12C of the probe needles 12C.
And the pad area (C) where the lands 20 for the pogo contacts are arranged are so wide that there is no room for the vertical cone. Therefore, it is difficult to provide a physical space for arranging a storage element described later on the probe card 11 in the probe card 11 currently used. In addition, the measurement signal transmitted through the highly integrated probe needle has extremely low noise other than the signal component, and it is required that the signal line used for communication between the probe devices be separated from the storage device as much as possible. There is.

In particular, in a logic circuit or a memory of 16 MDRAM or later, the operating voltage is lowered from the conventional 5 V to, for example, 2.4 V or less, and the threshold level tends to be lowered, and a plurality of these circuits and elements are arranged. There is a strong demand for noise countermeasures for the inspection of the inspection object. Therefore, in the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the above problem is solved by providing the probe card holder 30 with the area 32 for installing the storage element 31. Thus, the storage element 31 is connected to the probe card 1.
By installing it in an area different from 0, the problem of the physical constraint as described above is solved, and at the same time, the storage element 31 and conversely the measurement signal of the object to be inspected are protected against noise generated from the probe card 10. It became possible to do it. Further, even when the probe card 10 fails, the storage element 31 that can still be used does not need to be discarded together as in the related art, so that the storage element 31 can be reused.

The memory element 31 is mounted and fixed on the area 32 through an appropriate insulating material 34. By using the insulating material 34 as described above, in order to reduce the deformation of the probe card due to the stress generated when the probe tip of the probe card comes into contact with the substrate to be measured, a rigid metal material such as aluminum is used. And S
The storage element 31 can be electrically insulated and protected from the probe card holder 30 made of a conductive material such as US.

As shown in FIG. 6, the storage element 31 can be composed of, for example, two elements 31A and 31B, and preferably a plurality of EEPROMs (ELECTRICALLY ERASABLE PROG) according to the amount of data to be stored.
RAMMABLE READ ONLY MEMORY) is used as an element capable of writing and reading stored data. One ROM 31A stores various information related to the probe card 10 fixed to the probe card holder 30 before the inspection, and the other ROM 31B stores various information related to the probe card 10 rewritten each time the inspection is performed. Is stored.

As these pieces of information, Z of the mounting table 103 is used.
In addition to the Z-direction movement data for controlling the movement in the direction, for example, the number of contacts (total and trip), the relative position of the needle, the serial number of the probe card, the type of the probe card, the number of pins, the number of multis, the multilocation, The timing of execution of the HARN and the number of contacts, the overdrive allowance, the execution of slides after contact,
This includes the implementation of needle research and the execution of alarms and rejects for defective probe card products.

Further, an appropriate number of lands 33 for pogo contacts, which will be described later, are arranged on the upper surface of the memory element 31, and a terminal having pogo pins corresponding to each land 33, which will be described later, is pressed to press the pogo contacts. It is configured to make electrical contact with each other and to transmit / receive data to / from the controller 90.

As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 7, the memory element 31, for example, an EEPROM (ELECTRICALLY E
Between the RASABLE PROGRAMMABLE READ ONLY MEMORY) and the controller 90, a relay means 93 for controlling ON / OFF of a signal and a + 5V power supply line 92 may be interposed. According to such a configuration, when there is no access to the EEPROM, the relay 93 can be set to off so that the signal of the probe card does not pick up noise. In addition, as the relay means 93,
In addition to mechanical relay means, it is also possible to employ a relay circuit composed of a transistor or the like.

Next, the structure of the probe card holder 30 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the probe card holder 30 according to the present invention has a region around the probe card 10, preferably a region where a land 20 for a pogo contact is arranged and a load is applied by a pogo pin ring 50 described later at the time of inspection. That is, a region 35 for supporting the pad region (C) upward from the back surface is provided. Probe card 10
Can be fixed to this area 35 using a suitable fixing member (not shown), for example, a screw.

A region 32 for mounting the above-mentioned memory element 31 is provided on the outer periphery of this region. This area 3
When the probe card 10 and the storage element 31 are mounted and fixed, respectively, the level line on the upper surface of the pogo contact land 20 on the probe card 10 and the level line for the pogo contact on the storage element 31 The adjustment is performed so that the level line on the upper surface of the land 33 is substantially on the same plane. With this configuration, when the pogo pin ring 50 and the terminal 70 are pressed downward as described later, the probe card 10
And two electrical contacts between the pogo pin ring 50 and the terminal 70 and the storage element 31 can be achieved at the same time.

Further, at this time, according to the present invention, the stress applied to the probe card 10 by the pogo pin ring 50 can be absorbed by the region 35 of the probe card holder 30, so that the stress strain of the probe card 10 is reduced. It is possible. As a result, even when a parallelism of, for example, about ± 10 μm is required at the needle tip 13C, the tip 13C of the probe needle 12 is sufficiently parallel to the surface of the semiconductor wafer 102 with a uniform pressure. , It is possible to perform a highly accurate probe test.

Further, the probe card holder 3 shown in FIG.
Numeral 0 has an area 36 that curves downward in a bowl shape from the periphery of the probe card 10 to the center. The bowl-shaped region 36 is further arranged on the same plane as the bottom surface of the lower block 13C of the guide portion 13 and is continuous with the bottom region 37. According to the present invention, the overhang portion 38a is provided around the intermediate block 13B of the guide portion 13,
The projecting portion 38a of the guide portion is engaged with the bottom region 37 of the probe card holder 30, and is fixed by a fixing member 39a such as a screw. With this configuration, the pogo pin ring 50 can be used for inspection.
When the probe card is driven downward, it is possible to support the stress dispersed in the central portion of the probe card 10 upward, and to support the probe card 10 against the stress caused by the pogo pin ring 50 together with the region 35. Thus, the occurrence of the stress distortion can be prevented.

Further, according to the present invention, a plurality of shoulder portions 38 are provided in the outer peripheral area of the area 32. At the time of operation, the shoulder portion 38 is engaged with a predetermined place of the probe device 100 so that the probe card holder 3
In addition to being able to position the probe card holder 30 itself, the probe card holder 30 itself can be supported and fixed to the probe device 100 against the stress caused by the pogo pin ring 50.

Probe card 1 configured as described above
The probe card holder 30 and the probe card holder 30 are placed on the top plate 80 on the upper surface of the housing of the probe device 100 during measurement.
At this time, according to the present invention, the first engagement surface 81 of the probe card holder 30 and the first engagement surface 82 of the top plate 80 are processed into a smooth surface with high accuracy, and the probe card holder is held. The second engagement surface 83 of the tool 30 and the second of the overhanging portion.
Is also processed into a smooth surface with high accuracy. In this manner, the first engagement surface 81, 82 and the second engagement surface 83, 84 each achieve the parallelism with high accuracy, and the tip 12B of the probe needle 12 is moved with respect to the object to be processed. Positioning with high uniformity and high parallelism. Therefore, since the smooth surface treatment of the other parts can be omitted, the man-hour for manufacturing the device can be reduced.

Further, recently, the semiconductor wafer 102 is heated to a temperature of, for example, about 60 ° C. to 150 ° C. by a heater (not shown) built in the mounting table 103, and the electrical characteristics of the IC chip on the semiconductor wafer 102 in a high temperature state. The method of doing is being implemented. Conversely, when cooling, the semiconductor wafer can be cooled to −10 ° C. by circulating cooling water through the mounting table. In the case of such a measurement, the probe card 10 or the probe card holder 30 thermally expands or contracts due to radiant heat from a heated or cooled wafer or heat conduction from a stylus, and particularly aluminum or SUS having high heat conductivity. The stress concentration due to thermal expansion or thermal contraction occurs in the probe card holder 30 made of the above material, the probe card holder 30 itself is thermally deformed, the parallel balance of the tip 13C of the probe needle is lost, and the probe card holder 30 is set in advance at room temperature. There is a possibility that the overdrive amount cannot be added and accurate measurement cannot be performed.

Therefore, in the probe card holder 30 according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 6, by providing holes or grooves 39 in the circumferential direction of the bottom region 37 and the bowl-shaped region 36, the heat It is possible to absorb stress concentration caused by expansion or thermal contraction as elastic deformation in the hole or groove. As a result, the thermal displacement of the probe card holder 30 is reduced, and the amount of thermal displacement of the contact means such as the probe needle of the probe card 10 in the Z direction can be reduced, so that the predetermined overdrive amount is maintained. As a result, the probe can be brought into contact with the object to be inspected, so that an accurate probe inspection can be performed.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, the stress concentration is alleviated by forming holes or grooves in the probe card holder 30, but in addition to this, thermal displacement applied to the probe card holder 30. In order to compensate for the above, the probe card holder 30 may be configured by combining materials having different thermal expansion coefficients to alleviate stress concentration. For example, the probe card holder 30 has a multi-layered structure, and the probe card holder 30 is displaced so as to compensate for stress concentration due to heat conduction due to a bimetal effect by adopting a material having a high coefficient of thermal expansion in the circumferential direction of the upper layer. It is also possible to configure so that it is made to.

In the example shown in FIG. 5, the structure of the probe card holder 30 fixed to the protruding portion 38a formed below the middle block 13B of the guide portion 13 formed in a bowl shape is shown. Based probe card holder 3
The configuration of 0 is not limited to the above example. For example, the structure shown in FIG. 8 or FIG.
It is also possible to support the pressing force exerted by.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 or FIG. 9, the same members as those of the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 8 differs from the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 in that it differs from the region 36 extending downward from the peripheral portion of the probe card 10 from the end portion of the region 35, that is, the wiring area (B) and the pad. An area 40 is provided so as to curve downward from the vicinity of the boundary area with the area (C). This area 40 is the guide section 13 of the probe card 10.
And is fixed by a fixing member 41 such as a screw. As a result, the pressing force dispersed in the center of the probe card 10 is supported and absorbed by the region 40 on the lower surface of the upper block 13A,
The occurrence of stress distortion of the probe card 10 can be avoided.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the structure is further simplified, and the region 36 of the probe card holder 30 shown in FIG. 5 is extended substantially linearly beyond the pad area (C) to the region 42. The wiring area (B) is also configured to support the probe card 10. Further, in this embodiment, a shoulder 43 is provided around the upper block 13A of the guide 13 of the probe card 10.
The region 44 of the probe card holder 30 is engaged with the shoulder portion 43 from below, and is fixed to 45 by a fixing member such as a screw. As a result, the load applied to the probe card 10 is supported by the entire surface of the probe card holder 30, and the occurrence of stress distortion of the probe card 10 can be avoided.

Next, the operating state of the probe card holder 30 constructed according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. First, as shown in the exploded view of FIG. 10, the probe card 10 is placed and fixed on the region 35 on the upper surface of the probe card holder 30 constructed according to the present invention. At the same time, the storage element 31 is placed and fixed in the area 32. Then, at the time of inspection, the pogo pin ring 50 is pressed against the probe card 10.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the pogo pin ring 50 is a substantially columnar member having a cylindrical space in the center as shown in the figure, and its lower surface is
Pogo pins 51 are arranged so as to correspond to the lands 20 appropriately arranged in the pad area (C) of the probe card 10. At the time of inspection, the pogo pin ring 50 is driven by an appropriate pressing drive means, and the pogo pins 51 are pressed against the lands 20 of the probe card 10 to make electrical contact therewith, and the inspection data from the probe needle is transmitted. The pogo pins 52 are also arranged on the upper surface of the pogo pin ring 50, and the pogo pins 5 on these upper surfaces are used at the time of inspection.
2 is pressed against the corresponding land of the tester 60 and makes electrical contact therewith, and the inspection data from the probe needle is further transmitted to the tester, and the tester 60 determines the quality of the inspection target. At the same time, the pogo pins 71 provided on the lower surface of the terminal 71 are also in pressure contact with the lands 33 provided on the upper surface of the storage element, and transmit predetermined data to the controller 90 via the cable 72. .

Further, the controller 90 is connected to the CPU 91, and the CPU 91 sends a necessary drive signal to the mounting table 103 based on the signal from the controller to optimally drive and control each stage 103A, 103B and 103C. It is possible to

Also, as shown in FIG. 11, the pogo pin ring 5
The terminal 0 and the terminal 70 are engaged with each other at the surface 73, and the land 20 of the probe card 10 and the land 33 of the storage element 31 are adjusted so as to be substantially on the same surface. Each of the pogo pins 51 and 71 can be pressed into contact with both the land 20 of the probe card 10 and the land 33 of the storage element 31.

[0055]

As described above, according to the probe device of the present invention, it is possible to perform high temperature or low temperature measurement for inspecting an object to be inspected at high temperature or low temperature, or when a stress load is applied from the outside. Even if there is, the probe card holder itself has a structure that reduces thermal deformation and stress concentration, so it is necessary to maintain the contact between the probe needle tip and the object to be inspected with the optimum pressing force for precise measurement. Is possible.

Further, according to the present invention, even when a pressing force is applied to the probe card by pogo ring at the time of measurement, since the strength of the probe tip of the probe card is reinforced, the stress is absorbed. It is possible to avoid distortion of the probe card. As a result, the degree of parallelism and the pressure at the tip of the probe needle can be kept uniform, so that a highly accurate probe test can be performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a probe device equipped with a probe card holder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of a probe card.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing the operation of the probe needle of the probe card.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a configuration of a probe card.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a probe card holder configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a probe card holder configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a connection state between an EEPROM of a probe card holder and a probe device configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of another embodiment of a probe card holder configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of still another embodiment of the probe card holder configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an exploded view of a probe card holder, a probe card, and a pogo pin ring configured according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing a state in which a probe card holder configured according to the present invention is mounted on a probe device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 probe card 11 substrate 12 probe needle 13 guide portion 14 needle fixing resin 15 needle fixing plate 17 upper guide plate 18 lower guide plate 20 pogo contact land 30 probe card holder 31 memory element 32 third part 33 memory element Land 34 Insulating material 35 First portion 37 Second portion 39 Hole or groove portion 50 Pogo pin ring 60 Tester 100 Probe device 102 Semiconductor wafer 103 Mounting table A Needle stand area B Wiring area C Pad area

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A probe card comprising a probe needle that electrically contacts an object to be inspected to measure its electrical characteristics, and guide means for guiding the probe needle to the object to be inspected. In a probe device including a probe card holder for holding and fixing the probe card at a predetermined measurement position of the probe device, the probe card holding device is provided so as to reduce stress concentration applied to the probe card holder during measurement. characterized by comprising a hole along the circumferential direction of the tool, the probe device. 2. An object to be inspected is brought into electrical contact with the electricity.
The probe needle for measuring the static characteristics and the probe needle
And a guide means for guiding the inspection target.
Lobe card and its probe card
A probe card holder for holding and fixing it in place.
In a probe device including a holding tool, stress concentration applied to the probe card holding tool during measurement
Along the circumference of the probe card holder to
A probe device having a groove. 3. An object to be inspected is brought into electrical contact with the electricity.
The probe needle for measuring the static characteristics and the probe needle
And a guide means for guiding the inspection target.
Lobe card and its probe card
A probe card holder for holding and fixing it in place.
In a probe device including a holding tool, the thermal displacement applied to the probe card holding tool during measurement is compensated.
The probe card holder to compensate for the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion.
Characterized by the combination of
Robe device. 4. A probe for measuring electrical characteristics of an object to be inspected.
Guide means for guiding the needle to the object to be inspected
Use the provided probe card to set the measuring position of the probe device.
A probe card holder for holding and fixing the probe card to the back of the probe card.
Support the probe card upward in the peripheral area of the surface
And a guide for the probe card
Engagement with the guide means at an engaging portion provided in the peripheral portion of the step
And a second for supporting the probe card upward.
Part and the probe card on the top plate of the probe device.
A protrusion to which a holder can be attached, and a first part of the top plate and the probe card holder.
Parallelism of the engaging surface of the, and the guide means and the probe
Adjusting the parallelism of the second engaging surface with the card holder
The probe tip with respect to the object to be inspected
A probe device configured to adjust the parallelism.
The stress concentration applied to the probe card holder during measurement.
Along the circumference of the probe card holder to
A probe device having a hole. 5. A probe for measuring electrical characteristics of an object to be inspected.
Guide means for guiding the needle to the object to be inspected
Use the provided probe card to set the measuring position of the probe device.
A probe card holder for holding and fixing the probe card to the back of the probe card.
Support the probe card upward at the periphery of the surface
And a guide for the probe card
Engagement with the guide means at an engaging portion provided in the peripheral portion of the step
And a second for supporting the probe card upward.
Part and the probe card on the top plate of the probe device.
A protrusion to which a holder can be attached, and a first part of the top plate and the probe card holder.
Parallelism of the engaging surface of the, and the guide means and the probe
Adjusting the parallelism of the second engaging surface with the card holder
The probe tip with respect to the object to be inspected
A probe device configured to adjust the parallelism.
The stress concentration applied to the probe card holder during measurement.
Along the circumference of the probe card holder to
A probe device having a groove. 6. A probe for measuring electrical characteristics of an object to be inspected.
Guide means for guiding the needle to the object to be inspected
Use the provided probe card to set the measuring position of the probe device.
A probe card holder for holding and fixing the probe card to the back of the probe card.
Support the probe card upward at the periphery of the surface
And a guide for the probe card
Engagement with the guide means at an engaging portion provided on the step peripheral portion
And a second for supporting the probe card upward.
Part and the probe card on the top plate of the probe device.
A protrusion to which a holder can be attached, and a first part of the top plate and the probe card holder.
Parallelism of the engaging surface of the, and the guide means and the probe
Adjusting the parallelism of the second engaging surface with the card holder
The probe tip with respect to the object to be inspected
A probe device configured to adjust the parallelism.
Te, complement the thermal displacement applied to the probe card holder at the time of measurement
The probe card holder to compensate for the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion.
Characterized by the combination of
Robe device.