JP2006138777A - Sheet-like connector, its manufacturing method, and its application - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet-like probe achieving a stable state of connection to even circuit devices having electrodes of very small and fine pitch and high durability be preventing electrode structures from coming off from an insulating film, reliably preventing misregistration between the electrode structures and electrodes to be inspected due to temperature changes in burn-in test to large-area wafers and circuit devices having electrodes to be inspected of small pitch, and stably maintaining a satisfactory state of connection and to provide its manufacturing method. <P>SOLUTION: The sheet-like probe is provided with: an insulating layer having the plurality of electrode structures extended in thickness directions; and a support for supporting the insulating layer. The electrode structures comprise: surface electrode parts protruded from the surface of the insulating layer; back-surface electrode parts exposed to the back surface of the insulating layer; and short-circuit parts extended in thickness directions of the insulating layer continuously from the base ends of the surface electrode parts, connected to the back-surface electrode parts, and having the narrowest parts at center parts. In the manufacturing method, through holes are formed in the insulating layer from both surfaces. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet-like connector suitable as a probe device for making an electrical connection to a circuit such as an integrated circuit, for example, and a manufacturing method thereof, and an application thereof.

For example, in an electrical inspection of a circuit device such as a wafer on which a large number of integrated circuits are formed or an electronic component such as a semiconductor element, inspection electrodes arranged according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the inspection target electrode of the circuit device under inspection An inspection probe having the following is used. As such an inspection probe, a probe in which inspection electrodes made of pins or blades are arranged has been used.
However, when the circuit device to be inspected is a wafer on which a large number of integrated circuits are formed, it is necessary to arrange a very large number of inspection electrodes when producing an inspection probe for inspecting the wafer. Therefore, the inspection probe is extremely expensive, and when the pitch of the electrodes to be inspected is small, it is difficult to produce the inspection probe itself. Further, the wafer is generally warped, and the state of the warp varies depending on the product (wafer), so that each of the inspection electrodes of the inspection probe can be stably applied to a large number of inspection electrodes on the wafer. In addition, it is practically difficult to ensure contact.

  For the reasons described above, in recent years, as an inspection probe for inspecting an integrated circuit formed on a wafer, an inspection circuit board on which a plurality of inspection electrodes are formed according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode to be inspected. And an anisotropic conductive sheet disposed on one surface of the circuit board for inspection, and a plurality of electrodes extending through the flexible insulating sheet disposed in the thickness direction on the anisotropic conductive sheet There has been proposed one comprising a sheet-like connector in which structures are arranged (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 26 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an example of a conventional circuit inspection probe including an inspection circuit board, an anisotropic conductive sheet, and a sheet-like connector. In this circuit inspection probe, an inspection circuit board 85 having a large number of inspection electrodes 86 formed according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the inspection target electrode of the circuit device to be inspected is provided on one surface. A sheet-like connector 90 is disposed on one surface via an anisotropic conductive sheet 80.

  The anisotropic conductive sheet 80 has conductivity only in the thickness direction, or has a pressurized conductive portion that shows conductivity only in the thickness direction when pressed in the thickness direction. As the anisotropic conductive sheet, those having various structures are known. For example, Patent Document 2 discloses an anisotropic conductive sheet obtained by uniformly dispersing metal particles in an elastomer (hereinafter referred to as “ Dispersion-type anisotropic conductive sheet ") is disclosed, and Patent Document 3 discloses a plurality of conductive portions extending in the thickness direction by unevenly distributing conductive magnetic particles in an elastomer. , An anisotropic conductive sheet formed with an insulating part that insulates them from each other (hereinafter referred to as an "unevenly anisotropic conductive sheet") is disclosed. There is a step between the surface of the conductive part and the insulating part. Made the uneven distribution type anisotropically conductive sheet is disclosed.

  The sheet-like connector 90 has a flexible insulating sheet 91 made of, for example, resin, and a plurality of electrode structures 95 extending in the thickness direction are formed on the insulating sheet 91 in the pattern of the electrode to be inspected of the circuit device to be inspected. Arranged according to the corresponding pattern. Each of the electrode structures 95 includes a protruding surface electrode portion 96 exposed on the surface of the insulating sheet 91 and a plate-like back surface electrode portion 97 exposed on the back surface of the insulating sheet 91. Are integrally connected via a short-circuit portion 98 that extends through in the thickness direction.

Such a sheet-like connector 90 is generally manufactured as follows.
First, as shown in FIG. 27A, a laminate 90A in which a metal layer 92 is formed on one surface of an insulating sheet 91 is prepared, and as shown in FIG. A through hole 98H penetrating in the thickness direction is formed.
Next, as shown in FIG. 27C, a resist film 93 is formed on the metal layer 92 of the insulating sheet 91, and then an electrolytic plating process is performed using the metal layer 92 as a common electrode. A through-hole 98H is filled with a metal deposit to form a short-circuit portion 98 integrally connected to the metal layer 92, and is integrally connected to the short-circuit portion 98 on the surface of the insulating sheet 91. The protruding surface electrode portion 96 is formed.
Thereafter, the resist film 93 is removed from the metal layer 92, and a resist film 94A is formed on the surface of the insulating sheet 91 including the surface electrode portion 96 as shown in FIG. Then, a resist film 94B is formed in accordance with a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the back electrode portion to be formed, and the metal layer 92 is etched to give a metal layer 92 as shown in FIG. The exposed portion is removed to form the back surface electrode portion 97, thereby forming the electrode structure 95.
Then, the sheet-like connector 90 is obtained by removing the resist film 94A formed on the insulating sheet 91 and the front electrode portion 96 and removing the resist film 94B formed on the back electrode portion 97.

In the above-described inspection probe, the surface electrode portion 96 of the electrode structure 95 in the sheet-like connector 90 is arranged on the surface of the circuit device to be inspected, for example, the wafer 90 so as to be positioned on the inspection electrode of the wafer. When the wafer is pressed by the inspection probe, the anisotropic conductive sheet 80 is pressed by the back surface electrode portion 97 of the electrode structure 95 in the sheet-like connector 90, and thereby the anisotropic conductive sheet 80 is pressed. In this case, a conductive path is formed in the thickness direction between the back electrode portion 97 and the inspection electrode 86 of the inspection circuit board 85. As a result, the inspection electrode of the wafer and the inspection electrode 86 of the inspection circuit board 85 The electrical connection is achieved. In this state, a required electrical inspection is performed on the wafer.
According to such an inspection probe, when the wafer is pressed by the inspection probe, the anisotropic conductive sheet is deformed according to the warpage of the wafer. A good electrical connection can reliably be achieved for each of the electrodes.

However, the above-described inspection probe has the following problems.
In the step of forming the short-circuit portion 98 and the surface electrode portion 96 in the manufacturing method of the sheet-like connector described above, since the plating layer by electrolytic plating grows isotropically, as shown in FIG. In 96, the distance w from the peripheral edge of the surface electrode portion 96 to the peripheral edge of the short-circuit portion 98 is equal to the protruding height h of the surface electrode portion 96. Therefore, the diameter R of the surface electrode portion 96 obtained is considerably larger than twice the protrusion height h. Therefore, when the electrodes to be inspected in the circuit device to be inspected are minute and arranged at an extremely small pitch, a sufficient separation distance between the adjacent electrode structures 95 cannot be secured, and as a result In the obtained sheet-like connector, since the flexibility of the insulating sheet 91 is lost, it is difficult to achieve stable electrical connection to the circuit device under test.
Further, in the electrolytic plating process, it is practically difficult to supply a current having a uniform current density distribution to the entire surface of the metal layer 92. Due to the nonuniformity of the current density distribution, the through-holes of the insulating sheet 91 are provided. Since the growth rate of the plating layer is different every 98H, a large variation occurs in the protrusion height h of the surface electrode portion 96 to be formed and the distance w from the periphery of the surface electrode portion 96 to the periphery of the short-circuit portion 98, that is, the diameter R. . When there is a large variation in the protruding height h of the surface electrode portion 96, it is difficult to achieve a stable electrical connection to the circuit device to be inspected, while there is a large variation in the diameter of the surface electrode portion 96. In some cases, adjacent surface electrode portions 96 may be short-circuited.

  In the above, means for reducing the diameter of the surface electrode portion 96 to be obtained are means for reducing the protrusion height h of the surface electrode portion 96, and the diameter of the short-circuit portion 98 (if the cross-sectional shape is not circular, the shortest A means for reducing r, that is, reducing the diameter of the through hole 98H of the insulating sheet 91 is conceivable. However, the sheet-like connector obtained by the former means is stable with respect to the electrode to be inspected. On the other hand, it is difficult to reliably achieve such an electrical connection, while the latter means makes it difficult to form the short circuit part 98 and the surface electrode part 96 by electrolytic plating.

  In order to solve such a problem, in Patent Document 5 and Patent Document 6, a sheet-like connector in which a large number of electrode structures each having a tapered surface electrode portion having a small diameter from the proximal end toward the distal end are arranged. Has been proposed.

The sheet-like connector described in Patent Document 5 is manufactured as follows.
As shown in FIG. 29A, a resist film 93A and a front-side metal layer 92A are formed in this order on the surface of the insulating sheet 91, and a back-side metal layer 92B is laminated on the back surface of the insulating sheet 91. A laminated body 90B is prepared. As shown in FIG. 29B, through-holes extending in the thickness direction communicating with each of the back surface side metal layer 92B, the insulating sheet 91, and the resist film 93A in the laminated body 90B are formed. By forming the electrode structure forming recess 90 </ b> K, the electrode structure forming recess 90 </ b> K is formed on the back surface of the multilayer body 90 </ b> B. Next, as shown in FIG. 29 (c), the surface-side metal layer 92A in the laminate 90B is plated as an electrode, so that the electrode structure forming recess 90K is filled with metal and the surface electrode portion 96 and A short circuit portion 98 is formed. Then, by etching the back side metal layer in the laminate and removing a part thereof, as shown in FIG. 29 (d), a back electrode part 97 is formed, and thus the sheet-like connector is can get.

  Moreover, the sheet-like connector described in Patent Document 6 is manufactured as follows. As shown in FIG. 30A, a surface-side metal layer 92A is formed on the surface of an insulating sheet material 91A having a larger thickness than the insulating sheet in the sheet-like connector to be formed, and the back surface of the insulating sheet material 91A. 30C is prepared by laminating the back-side metal layer 92B to each other, and as shown in FIG. 30B, the back-side metal layer 92B and the insulating sheet material 91A in the laminate 90C communicate with each other. By forming a through-hole extending in the thickness direction, a recess 90K for forming an electrode structure having a tapered shape that matches the short-circuit portion and the surface electrode portion of the electrode structure to be formed on the back surface of the laminate 90C. Form. Next, by plating the surface side metal layer 92A in the laminate 90C as an electrode, the electrode structure forming recess 90K is filled with metal as shown in FIG. A short circuit portion 98 is formed. Thereafter, the surface side metal layer 92A in the laminate 90C is removed, and the insulating sheet material 91A is etched to remove the surface side portion of the insulating sheet, as shown in FIG. Then, the insulating sheet 91 having a required thickness is formed, and the surface electrode portion 96 is exposed. Then, the back surface metal layer 92B is etched to form a back electrode portion, thereby obtaining a sheet-like connector.

According to such a sheet-like connector, since the surface electrode portion is tapered, the surface electrode portion having a small diameter and a high protruding height is separated from the surface electrode portion of the adjacent electrode structure. Since each surface electrode part of the electrode structure can be formed in a sufficiently secured state, and the electrode structure forming recess formed in the laminate is formed as a cavity, the surface electrode part Thus, an electrode structure with a small variation in the protruding height is obtained.
However, in these sheet-like connectors, since the diameter of the surface electrode portion in the electrode structure is equal to or smaller than the diameter of the short-circuited portion, that is, the diameter of the through hole formed in the insulating sheet, Falls off from the back surface of the insulating sheet, and it is difficult to actually use the sheet-like connector.

Furthermore, in the sheet-like connector as described above, a recess 90K for forming an electrode structure having a tapered shape that matches the short-circuit portion and the surface electrode portion of the electrode structure to be formed is provided on the back surface of the laminate 90C. Therefore, the tip diameter 92T of the electrode structure forming recess is smaller than the diameter of the opening 92H formed on the back surface of the laminate 90C, and the opening formed on the back surface side increases as the thickness of the insulating sheet increases. It was necessary to make the diameter of 92H large.
Therefore, when manufacturing a sheet-like connector having a high-density electrode structure with a fine pitch, it is necessary to secure an insulating portion 92N between adjacent openings 92H on the back side of the laminate 90C when the thickness of the insulating sheet increases. Therefore, the diameter of the opening 92H cannot be increased. As a result, the tip diameter 92T of the electrode structure forming recess 90K is reduced, and the electrode structure forming recess 90K that does not contact the surface-side metal layer 92A is formed. There was a case.
In this way, when the electrode structure forming recess 90K does not sufficiently contact the surface-side metal layer 92A, the metal cannot be filled by plating, and the number of electrode structures is insufficient and the sheet-like connector is difficult to use. It will be.

  In addition, when the diameter of the tip portion of the electrode structure is reduced, the tip portion tends to wear and be lost during repeated use, and the height variation of the electrode structure tends to increase. It is also necessary that the diameter and the diameter of the proximal end are not too small, and it is also necessary to adjust the diameter of the distal end portion depending on the material of the electrode structure. However, the adjustment of the opening diameter on the back side is limited by the thickness of the laminated body, and the adjustment of the opening diameter on the back side is limited. In manufacturing, it may be difficult to construct an electrode structure having a desired tip diameter.

  In order to solve such problems, Patent Document 7 proposes a sheet-like connector that includes a holding portion in the surface electrode portion of the electrode structure and prevents the electrode structure from falling off the insulating sheet. .

The sheet-like connector described in Patent Document 7 is manufactured as follows.
As shown in FIG. 31A, a first surface side metal layer 121 is formed on the surface of an insulating sheet 125 having a back side metal layer 123 on the back side, and the surface of the first surface metal layer 121 is formed. A laminated body 120A having the insulating layer 124 and the second surface-side metal layer 122 formed on the surface of the insulating layer 124 is prepared.
First, an opening 123H for forming an electrode structure is formed at a position corresponding to the electrode structure to be formed in the back-side metal layer 123, and a through hole 125H is formed in the insulating sheet 125 in the opening to form a through hole. The first surface metal layer 121 is exposed at the bottom, then a through hole 121H is formed in the first surface metal layer 121 at the bottom of the through hole, and the insulating layer 124 is exposed at the bottom of the through hole 121H. (Fig. 31 (b))
A through hole 124H is formed in the insulating layer 124 exposed at the bottom of the through hole 121H, the second surface metal layer 122 is exposed at the bottom, and the back surface side metal layer 123, the insulating sheet 125, and the first surface side metal layer are exposed. A recess 120K for forming an electrode structure communicating with 121 and the insulating layer 124 is formed to obtain a laminate 120B. (Fig. 31 (c))

Then, the electrode structure forming recess 120K is filled with metal by electroplating using the second surface-side metal layer 122 in the laminate 120B as a common electrode, thereby forming the surface electrode portion 127 and the short-circuit portion 128. A body 120C is obtained. (Fig. 31 (d))
Then, the second surface-side metal layer 122 in the stacked body 120C is removed by etching, and the insulating layer 124 is further removed by etching to obtain a stacked body 120D. (Fig. 31 (e))
Then, an etching process is performed on the first surface-side metal layer 121 in the laminate 120D, a part thereof is removed, the remaining part is used as a holding part 129, and the back-side metal layer 123 is further removed by etching. Thus, the sheet-like connector 131 having the electrode structure 130 provided with the holding portion 129 is obtained as shown in FIG.

In this sheet-like connector manufacturing method, polyimide is preferably used for the insulating sheet and the insulating layer, and the formation of the through hole is performed by etching with a solution. Therefore, the insulating sheet formed in the same manner as Patent Document 5 and Patent Document 6 and the through-hole formed in the insulating layer have a tapered shape that narrows from the opening toward the tip.
Since the tapered through hole is formed in the insulating layer from the opening at the tip where the diameter of the tapered through hole provided in the insulating sheet is reduced, the through hole formed in the insulating layer is formed of the insulating sheet. It becomes smaller than the tip diameter of the through hole.

Therefore, when manufacturing a sheet-like connector having a high-density electrode structure with a fine pitch, when increasing the thickness of the insulating sheet to increase the strength of the sheet-like connector, or by increasing the insulating layer, the electrode structure When the protrusion height of the front surface electrode portion is increased, the diameter of the opening portion 123H cannot be increased due to the necessity of securing the insulating portion 123N between the adjacent opening portions 123H on the back surface side of the stacked body 120C. In some cases, the tip diameter 122T of the electrode structure forming recess 120K is reduced, and the electrode structure forming recess 120K not in contact with the second surface-side metal layer 122 is formed.
Further, in the manufacturing method of the sheet-like connector, in the manufacturing, as shown in FIG. 31 (a), the first surface-side metal layer is formed on the surface of the insulating sheet 125 provided with the back-side metal layer 123 on the back surface. It is necessary to prepare a laminate 120 </ b> A having 121, an insulating layer 124 formed on the surface of the first surface metal layer 121, and a second surface side metal layer 122 formed on the surface of the insulating layer 124. is there. It is not easy to prepare and obtain a laminate having a five-layer structure including three metal layers and two insulating resin layers.
In this manufacturing method, polyimide is preferably used for the two insulating resin layers, but one can use a polyimide sheet with copper foil, but the other insulating resin layer can be used as a polyimide sheet with copper foil. In the case of laminating and integrating, for example, depending on the laminating means such as the use of an adhesive resin layer, there are restrictions on the resin that can be laminated and the thickness of the laminate. Preparation is difficult.
Therefore, in the sheet-like connector produced by this production method, the thickness of the short-circuited portion or the surface electrode portion of the obtained sheet-like connector is restricted due to restrictions such as the thickness of the insulating resin layer, and all uses. However, there is also a problem that a sheet-like connector having an electrode structure having a structure satisfying the performance cannot be obtained.

  Further, in the case of a sheet-like connector, for example, when an object to be inspected is an 8-inch wafer used for wafer inspection, the size of the insulating sheet is 8 inches or more in diameter, and the temperature change during inspection is large. When the temperature changes from 125 ° C. to 125 ° C., the linear expansion coefficient of the insulating sheet is different from the linear expansion coefficient of the wafer. Therefore, the positional deviation between the position of the electrode structure of the sheet-like connector and the inspection target electrode of the inspection object wafer The outbreak was a concern.

  In order to improve the positional shift of the electrode structure of the sheet-like connector due to the temperature change at the time of this inspection, a sheet-like connector supported by a metal support is devised, for example, as shown in Patent Document 8. .

In the sheet-like connector with a metal support shown in Patent Document 8, the metal support is formed by dividing a back-side metal layer used for manufacturing the sheet-like connector into a back-side electrode part and a support. .
Therefore, the metal support is the same metal as the metal constituting the back electrode portion of the electrode structure. And as a metal which comprises a back surface electrode part, since electrical conduction is favorable, copper is preferably used. Furthermore, since the back surface electrode part is formed by etching from the back surface side metal layer, it is relatively easy to perform etching. Although a thin copper foil is preferably used, a metal support formed from a back-side metal layer made of this thin copper foil is not necessarily preferred because of its large copper linear expansion coefficient and low mechanical strength of the copper foil. It was not a thing.

And in the sheet-like connector which provided the holding | maintenance part in the surface electrode part of the electrode structure shown by patent document 7, and prevented the electrode structure from dropping | disconnecting from an insulating sheet, with a metal support body shown by patent document 8 When the sheet-like connector manufacturing method is applied, there are the following problems.
That is, when a relatively thick metal layer preferable as a metal support is used for the back side metal layer or the first front side metal layer, and the metal support is formed from this, the insulating sheet is formed from the back side metal layer. The recess for forming an electrode structure formed by communicating the first surface side metal layer and the insulating layer further increases the depth when the thickness of the back surface side metal layer or the first surface side metal layer increases. Therefore, the tip diameter 92T of the electrode structure forming recess 90K becomes smaller, and there is a concern that the electrode structure forming recess 90K that does not contact the surface-side metal layer 92A is formed.

  Furthermore, in the manufacturing method of the sheet-like connector shown in Patent Documents 5 to 8 above, a through hole for forming an electrode structure is formed on an insulating sheet such as polyimide. As shown in FIG. 32, a pattern of a photoresist film 83 having an opening 83a in a portion where a through hole is formed is formed on one surface of a polyimide sheet 81, and the entire sheet is formed by immersing in an etching solution. . Obtainable. In this method, a through hole 81a in which the metal film 82 laminated on the polyimide sheet 81 is exposed on the bottom surface is formed, and an electrode structure is formed through a process of performing electrolytic plating using the metal film 82 as a common electrode.

  However, when a through-hole is formed in a polyimide sheet by etching, the through-hole 81a is tapered as shown in FIG. 32, and the diameter gradually decreases toward the back. For this reason, when a polyimide sheet having a large thickness is used, the hole is closed before reaching the metal layer 82, and a through hole cannot be formed.

  That is, the angle (etching angle) θ of the inclined surface of the through hole 81a varies depending on the processing conditions, but is, for example, 45 ° to 50 °. For this reason, when the polyimide sheet 81 is etched from one side, the hole can be opened only halfway through the polyimide sheet 81 unless the thickness t of the polyimide sheet 81 is equal to or less than ½ of the opening diameter φ1.

  As the electrode pitch of the wafer to be inspected is narrowed, the arrangement pitch of the electrode structure of the sheet-like probe is also shortened. Currently, it is usually 100 to 120 μm, but in the future, for example, less than 100 μm, and further 80 μm or less It is thought that it is necessary to make it shorter. On the other hand, in order to ensure insulation between adjacent electrode structures, for example, 40 to 50 μm is required as the width of the insulating portion between them (the difference between the arrangement pitch of the electrode structures and the opening diameter φ1). It is said. When using a thick sheet to ensure the strength of the polyimide sheet, it is necessary to increase the opening diameter φ1 as described above in order to form a through hole by etching. If the opening diameter φ1 is increased while keeping the pitch constant, it becomes impossible to ensure insulation between adjacent electrode structures. For this reason, if the arrangement pitch of the electrode structure is reduced, the thickness of the polyimide sheet is limited. For example, when the arrangement pitch of the electrode structure is 120 μm and the opening diameter φ1 of the through hole is 70 μm, the thickness of the polyimide sheet to be used The thickness t must be 35 μm or less, and the thickness t must be further reduced in order to make the opening diameter φ2 on the bottom surface side more than a certain level.

When the electrode structure is formed in the tapered through hole 81a as shown in FIG. 32, if the opening diameter φ2 on the back side in the etching direction is small, the electrical resistance value increases. Therefore, the opening diameter φ2 of the small diameter portion is as large as possible. It is desirable.
Further, when the opening diameter φ2 is small, the small diameter portion affects the electric resistance value, so that there is a concern that the variation in the electric resistance value between the electrode structures provided in the sheet-like probe increases. .

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-231019 JP 51-93393 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 53-147772 JP-A-61-250906 JP 11-326378 A JP 2002-196018 A JP 2004-172589 A Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-131864

The present invention has been made based on the circumstances as described above, and the first object thereof is to form an electrode structure having a surface electrode portion having a small diameter, and electrodes can be formed at a small pitch. A sheet-like connector that can reliably achieve a stable electrical connection state with respect to the formed circuit device and that has high durability without the electrode structure being detached from the insulating sheet. It is to provide.
The second object is to provide a stable electrical connection state even for a circuit device in which electrodes are formed at a small pitch, including an electrode structure having a surface electrode portion with a large thickness and a small diameter of an insulating sheet. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet-like connector that can reliably achieve the above and has high durability.
A third object of the present invention is to form an electrode structure having a surface electrode portion with a small variation in protrusion height, and stable electrical connection even to a circuit device having electrodes formed at a small pitch. An object of the present invention is to provide a method capable of producing a sheet-like connector that can reliably achieve the state and that can obtain high durability without the electrode structure being detached from the insulating sheet.

A fourth object of the present invention is a sheet-like connector made of an insulating sheet having a large thickness, wherein the tip diameter of the surface electrode portion is increased, the strength of the surface electrode portion is increased, and the electrode structure is insulated. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method capable of producing a sheet-like connector that can be obtained with high durability without falling off from the conductive sheet.
A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a method capable of producing the above sheet-like connector without using a five-layer laminate comprising an insulating resin and a metal layer that are difficult to obtain. .
The sixth object of the present invention is to provide a metal support that is less affected by the displacement of the electrode structure due to temperature changes during inspection, and is made of a thick insulating sheet, and the electrode structure falls off the insulating sheet. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method capable of producing a sheet-like connector that can obtain high durability without any problems.
A seventh object of the present invention is to provide a circuit inspection probe comprising the sheet-like connector described above.
An eighth object of the present invention is to provide an inspection apparatus for a circuit device comprising the above-described circuit inspection probe.

The sheet-like connector of the present invention comprises a support having a plurality of openings formed corresponding to electrode regions in which electrodes to be inspected in all or some of the integrated circuits formed on a wafer to be inspected, and An insulating layer disposed on and supported by the surface of the support so as to close the opening, and a plurality of insulating layers disposed in the insulating layer and spaced apart from each other in the plane direction, extending in the thickness direction of the insulating layer. Having an electrode structure of
Each of the electrode structures is exposed on the surface of the insulating layer and protrudes from the surface of the insulating layer; a back electrode portion exposed on the back surface of the insulating layer;
A sheet-like connector consisting of a short-circuit portion connected to the back electrode portion, extending through the insulating layer in the thickness direction continuously from the base end of the front electrode portion,
The short-circuit part has a narrowest part having a diameter smaller than the diameters of both end parts in the central part in the thickness direction.

A method for producing a sheet-like connector of the present invention is a method for producing the above-mentioned sheet-like connector, in which an insulating sheet having through holes formed on both sides is laminated on a metal sheet via a resist layer, The resist layer is exposed through the through hole to form a pattern hole to expose the metal sheet on the bottom surface of the pattern hole,
Electroplating is performed using a metal sheet as an electrode, and a step of forming an electrode structure by filling a metal into a pattern hole of a resist layer and a through hole of an insulating sheet is provided.

The probe for circuit inspection of the present invention is a probe for circuit inspection for performing electrical connection between a circuit device to be inspected and a tester,
A circuit board for inspection in which a plurality of inspection electrodes are formed corresponding to the electrodes to be inspected of the circuit device to be inspected, an anisotropic conductive connector disposed on the circuit board for inspection, and the anisotropic conductivity It comprises the above-mentioned sheet-like connector disposed on the connector.

The circuit inspection probe according to the present invention is a wafer on which a circuit device to be inspected is formed with a large number of integrated circuits,
The anisotropic conductive connector includes a support having an opening corresponding to an electrode region in which an electrode to be inspected in all integrated circuits or a part of integrated circuits formed on a wafer to be inspected, It is preferable to have an anisotropic conductive sheet disposed so as to close each opening of the support.

  A circuit device inspection apparatus according to the present invention comprises the above-described circuit inspection probe.

According to the sheet-like connector of the present invention, the electrode structure includes the short-circuit portion having the narrowest portion having a diameter smaller than the diameters of both end portions in the central portion in the thickness direction.
Therefore, even if the diameter of the surface electrode portion is smaller than the diameter of the short-circuit portion, the electrode structure does not fall off from the insulating sheet, and high durability is obtained.
In addition, since it is possible to form a surface electrode portion having a small diameter, a sufficient separation distance between adjacent surface electrode portions is ensured, so that the flexibility of the insulating sheet is sufficiently exerted. As a result, it is possible to reliably achieve a stable electrical connection state even for a circuit device in which electrodes are formed at a small pitch.

According to the sheet-like connector according to the present invention,
Since the insulating film is supported in the opening of the frame plate, the area of the contact film disposed in the opening of the support can be reduced. For example, if a support body in which a plurality of openings are formed corresponding to an electrode region in which an electrode to be inspected of a circuit device to be inspected is used, the support body is disposed at each of these openings and supported by the peripheral portion thereof. The area of each contact film can be greatly reduced.
Since such an insulating film with a small area has a small absolute amount of thermal expansion in the surface direction of the insulating film, the thermal expansion of the insulating film can be reliably regulated by the support. Therefore, even if the inspection object is, for example, a large-area wafer having a diameter of 8 inches or more or a circuit device having a very small pitch of the electrode to be inspected, the electrode structure and the electrode to be inspected due to temperature change during the burn-in test Therefore, it is possible to reliably maintain a good electrical connection state.

  According to the method for manufacturing a sheet-like connector of the present invention, after forming through holes in the insulating sheet in advance, the electrode structure is laminated with the metal layer for forming by electroplating. A sheet-like connector can be produced without using a laminate composed of layers.

And, in forming the through hole in the insulating sheet, by forming the through hole from both sides of the insulating sheet, for example, when forming the through hole with an etching solution in the polyimide sheet, as described above, the through hole, Since the taper is formed so that the diameter gradually decreases from the opening to the back, if the insulating sheet is made thicker than the predetermined opening diameter, the hole is blocked and cannot be penetrated, but etching is performed from both sides of the insulating sheet. As a result, the shape gradually decreases from the opening on both sides to the vicinity of the center in the penetration direction, and the small diameter portion of the hole becomes near the center of the hole. The thickness of the insulating sheet to be doubled by simple calculation as compared with the case where etching is performed from only one side of the insulating sheet.
Thus, the thickness range of the insulating sheet that can be used to form a through hole with a predetermined opening diameter is increased by forming through holes by etching from both sides of the insulating sheet. In order to shorten the arrangement pitch of the structures, it is necessary to use a thick insulating sheet that can ensure the desired strength even if the opening diameter of the through hole is reduced to such an extent that the insulation between adjacent electrode structures can be ensured. it can.
Then, by filling the through-hole having the small-diameter portion of the hole in the vicinity of the central portion thus formed with metal, an electrode structure composed of a short-circuit portion having the narrowest portion in the vicinity of the central portion in the thickness direction is formed. Can do.
As a result, it is possible to easily manufacture a sheet-like connector having a fine pitch and high-density electrode structure in which the surface electrode part diameter is smaller than the maximum diameter of the short-circuit part and the electrode structure is less likely to drop off.
Further, a support having an opening corresponding to an electrode region in which an electrode to be inspected in all or a part of the integrated circuit formed on the wafer to be inspected is separately processed and laminated. Therefore, the metal species forming the support can be selected from a metal species different from the metal species forming the electrode structure of the insulation layer, and the thickness of the support can also be arbitrarily selected. Can do. Therefore, by using a highly electrically conductive metal for the electrode structure and a metal having a large thickness and a small coefficient of thermal expansion for the support, a sheet-like connector having high dimensional stability and mechanical strength can be obtained. Can be manufactured.

According to the probe for circuit inspection of the present invention, since the sheet-like connector is provided, a stable electrical connection state can be reliably achieved even for a circuit device in which electrodes are formed at a small pitch. Moreover, even if the electrode structure in the sheet-like connector does not fall off and the inspection object is a large area wafer having a diameter of 8 inches or more or a circuit device having a very small pitch of the electrodes to be inspected, Since a good electrical connection state can be stably maintained, high durability can be obtained.
According to the circuit device inspection apparatus of the present invention, since the circuit inspection probe is provided, a stable electrical connection state can be reliably achieved even for a circuit device having electrodes formed at a small pitch. In addition, even when a large number of circuit devices are inspected, a highly reliable inspection can be performed over a long period of time.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.
(Sheet connector)
FIG. 1 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a first example of a sheet-like connector according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing an enlarged electrode structure in the sheet-like connector of the first example. It is sectional drawing.
The sheet-like connector 10 of the first example is used for a probe for performing an electrical inspection of a circuit device, and has a flexible insulating layer 18B and a support body 25. The insulating layer 18B includes The plurality of electrode structures 15 made of metal extending in the thickness direction of the insulating layer 18B are separated from each other in the surface direction of the insulating layer 18B according to the pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode to be inspected of the circuit device to be inspected. Are arranged.

Each of the electrode structures 15 is exposed on the surface of the insulating layer 18B and protrudes from the surface of the insulating layer 18B, and a rectangular flat plate-shaped back electrode exposed on the back surface of the insulating layer 18B. In the electrode structure 15 of this example, the short-circuit part 48 extended through the insulating layer 18B in the thickness direction and connected to the back electrode part 17 continuously from the base end of the part 17 and the surface electrode part 16 The surface electrode portion 16 is formed in a tapered shape having a smaller diameter as it goes from the proximal end to the distal end continuously to the short-circuit portion 48, and is formed in a truncated cone shape continuously to the proximal end of the surface electrode portion 16. The short-circuit portion 48 becomes smaller in diameter from the other surface and one surface of the insulating sheet 11 toward the central portion, and the narrowest portion 55 having the smallest diameter is formed in the central portion.
The diameter R ₁ of the base end of the surface electrode portion 16 is smaller than the diameter R ₃ of one end of the short-circuit portion 48 continuous with the base end.

The insulating layer 18B is not particularly limited as long as it is flexible and has insulating properties. For example, a resin sheet made of polyimide resin, liquid crystal polymer, polyester, fluorine resin, etc. Although a sheet impregnated with resin can be used, it is preferably made of an etchable material in that a through hole for forming the short-circuit portion 48 can be easily formed by etching, and polyimide is particularly preferable. . The thickness d of the insulating sheet 11 is not particularly limited as long as the insulating layer 18B is flexible, but is preferably 5 to 150 μm, more preferably 7 to 100 μm, and still more preferably 10 to 10 μm. 70 μm.

The support 25 is provided integrally with the insulating layer 18B, and may be provided on the surface of the insulating layer 18B while being laminated with the insulating layer 18B, or may be included as an intermediate layer in the insulating layer 18B.
The support body 25 is disposed away from the electrode structure 15 and the electrode structure body 15 and the support body 25 are connected by the insulating sheet 15, so that the electrode structure body 15 and the support body 25 are electrically connected to each other. Insulated.

Further, according to the method for manufacturing a sheet-like connector described later, the support 25 corresponds to the electrode region in which the electrodes to be inspected are arranged in all or some of the integrated circuits formed in the circuit device to be inspected. A frame plate with openings formed thereon is laminated and integrated with the insulating layer 18B, or a support forming metal layer is formed on the surface of the insulating layer 18B, and then the support forming metal layer is etched. By applying, a support body in which an opening is formed corresponding to an electrode region in which an electrode to be inspected is arranged in all or a part of an integrated circuit formed in a circuit device to be inspected is formed. is there.

Examples of the metal constituting the support 25 include iron, copper, nickel, chromium, cobalt, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, palladium, titanium, tungsten, aluminum, and alloys or alloy steels thereof. For example, an Invar type alloy such as Invar, an Elinvar type alloy such as Elinvar, Super Invar, Kovar, 42 alloy or the like can be used.
In the manufacturing method described later, when forming a support by forming a metal layer for forming a support and then performing an etching process, an opening can be easily formed by the etching process. Iron-nickel alloy steel such as Kovar, copper, nickel and alloys thereof are preferable.
Further, the linear thermal expansion coefficient of the support 25 is 3 × 10 ⁻⁵ / K or less from the viewpoint of preventing the positional deviation between the electrode under test of the circuit device and the electrode structure of the sheet-like probe in the burn-in test. Is more preferable, more preferably 1 × 10 ⁻⁷ to 1 × 10 ⁻⁵ / K, still more preferably 1 × 10 ⁻⁶ to 8 × 10 ⁻⁶ / K.

Specific examples of the material constituting the support 25 include Invar type alloys such as Invar, Elinvar type alloys such as Elinvar, alloys such as Super Invar, Kovar, and 42 alloy, or alloy steel.
The thickness of the support 25 is preferably 3 to 150 μm, more preferably 5 to 100 μm. If this thickness is too small, the strength required for the frame plate for supporting the contact film 15 may not be obtained. If this thickness exceeds 150 μm, the laminate is used with an anisotropic conductive connector. The thickness of the support of the sheet-like connector tends to be smaller than the protruding height of the conductive path forming part of the anisotropic conductive connector, and the electrical connection between the electrode structure of the sheet-like connector and the conductive path forming part of the anisotropic conductive connector May be difficult.

Further, the insulating sheet may be separated into a large number of contact films by etching or the like and supported on the support.
In this case, a flexible contact film for holding the electrode structure is disposed in each opening of the support 25 in an independent state.
Each of the contact films 51 has a flexible insulating layer 18B as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25, and the insulating layer 18B includes a plurality of electrode structures made of metal extending in the thickness direction of the insulating layer 18B. 15 are arranged apart from each other in the surface direction of the insulating layer 18B according to the pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode to be inspected in the electrode region of the wafer to be inspected, and the contact film 51 is formed on the support 25. It arrange | positions so that it may be located in the opening part 25H.

As the metal constituting the electrode structure 15, nickel, copper, gold, silver, palladium, iron or the like can be used. As the electrode structure 15, even if the whole is made of a single metal, It may be made of an alloy of two or more metals or a laminate of two or more metals.
In the manufacturing method described later, when the surface side metal layer and the back side metal layer are selectively removed by etching after forming the surface electrode portion, nickel is preferable as the metal constituting the electrode structure 15.
Further, on the surface of the front electrode portion 16 and the back electrode portion 17 in the electrode structure 15, in order to prevent the electrode portion from being oxidized and to obtain an electrode portion having a low contact resistance, a chemical such as gold, silver, palladium, etc. In other words, a metal film having a stable and high conductivity may be formed.

In the electrode structure 15, the ratio of the diameter R _{2 at} the distal end to the diameter R ₁ at the proximal end of the surface electrode portion 16 (R ₂ / R ₁ ) is preferably 0.3 to 1.1, more preferably. 0.5 to 0.95. By satisfying such a condition, even if the circuit device to be connected has a small pitch and a minute electrode, a stable electrical connection state can be reliably obtained with respect to the circuit device.
The diameter R ₁ of the base end of the surface electrode portion 16 is preferably 20 to 65% of the pitch of the electrode structures 15, more preferably 30 to 55%.
Further, the ratio h / R ₁ of the projected height h to the diameter R ₁ in the base end of the surface electrode portion 16 is preferably 0.2 to 1.2, more preferably 0.25 to 0.8 is there. By satisfying such a condition, even if the circuit device to be connected has a small pitch and a minute electrode, the electrode structure 15 having a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode can be easily formed. Thus, a stable electrical connection to the circuit device can be obtained more reliably.
The diameter R ₁ of the base end of the surface electrode portion 16 is set in consideration of the above conditions, the diameter of the electrode to be connected, and the like, and is, for example, 20 to 80 μm, and preferably 30 to 50 μm.
The height of the protruding height h of the surface electrode portion 16 is preferably 10 to 80 μm, more preferably 15 to 50 μm, in that stable electrical connection can be achieved with respect to the electrode to be connected. It is.

Further, the outer diameter R ₅ of the back electrode portion 17 may be smaller than the pitch of the electrode structures 15, but is preferably as large as possible, thereby, for example, with respect to the anisotropic conductive sheet However, a stable electrical connection can be reliably achieved.
In addition, the thickness d ₂ of the back electrode part 17 is preferably 0.1 to 150 μm, more preferably 1 to 75 μm, from the viewpoint that the strength is sufficiently high and excellent repeated durability is obtained.

The diameter R ₃ at one end and the diameter R _{4 at the} other end of the short-circuit portion 48 are preferably 30 to 70% of the pitch of the electrode structure 15, more preferably 35 to 60%.
The ratio R ₃ / R ₄ of the diameter R ₃ at one end to the diameter R _{4 at the} other end is preferably 0.7 to 1.5, more preferably 0.8 to 1.2.
Further, the diameter R ₃ at one end and the diameter R _{4 at the} other end of the short-circuit portion 48 are preferably 30 to 70% of the pitch of the electrode structure 15, and more preferably 35 to 60%.

According to such a sheet-like connector 10, the electrode structure 15 has the short-circuit portion having the narrowest portion in the vicinity of the central portion in the thickness direction, and thus the surface electrode portion 16 has a small diameter. Even so, the electrode structure 16 does not fall off from the back surface of the insulating layer 18B, and high durability is obtained.
Further, by having the surface electrode portion 16 having a small diameter, a sufficient separation distance between the adjacent surface electrode portions 16 is ensured, so that the flexibility due to the insulating layer 18B is sufficiently exhibited, and as a result, a small pitch. Thus, it is possible to reliably achieve a stable electrical connection state even for a circuit device in which electrodes are formed.

The sheet-like connector 10 of the first example can be manufactured as follows, for example.
First, as shown in FIG. 3, the insulating sheet 11, the front surface side metal layer 16 </ b> A formed on the surface of the insulating sheet 11, and the back surface side metal layer 19 </ b> A formed on the back surface of the insulating sheet 11. A laminated body 10A is prepared.
In this laminated body 10A, it is preferable to use an etchable polymer material as the material constituting the insulating sheet 11, and more preferably polyimide.
The metal constituting the front side metal layer 16A and the back side metal layer 19A can be used as an exposure mask in the exposure of the resist layer 60 and can be selectively removed by short-time etching in the manufacturing method described later. Copper is preferred because of its ease.
For example, a laminated polyimide sheet in which a metal layer made of, for example, copper is laminated on both surfaces that are generally commercially available can be used as the laminated body 10A.

For such a laminate 10A, a plurality of pattern holes are formed on the surface of the surface-side metal layer 16A and the surface-side metal layer 16A according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode structure 15 to be formed, as shown in FIG. An etching resist film 12A having 12H formed thereon is formed, and a plurality of pattern holes 13H are formed on the surface of the back side metal layer 19A in accordance with a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode structure 15 to be formed. A resist film 13A is formed.
Here, as a material for forming the resist films 12A and 13A, various materials used as a photoresist for etching can be used.

Next, etching is performed on the exposed portions of the front surface side metal layer 16A and the back surface side metal layer 19A through the pattern holes 12H of the resist film 12A and the pattern holes 13H of the resist film 13A, thereby removing the portions. As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of through holes 16H communicating with the pattern holes 12H of the resist film 12A are formed in the front side metal layer 16A, respectively, and the patterns of the resist film 13H are formed in the back side metal layer 19A, respectively. A plurality of through holes 19H communicating with the holes 13H are formed.
Thereafter, each pattern hole 12H of the resist film 12A and each through hole 16H of the surface side metal layer 16A, and each pattern hole 13H of the resist film 13A and each through hole 19H of the back side metal layer 19A are formed on the insulating sheet 11. As shown in FIG. 6, the portion exposed through the etching process is performed from both sides to remove the portion, so that the diameter decreases from the back surface of the insulating sheet 11 toward the center portion. A stacked body 10B in which a plurality of through holes 11H having the narrowest portion 55 is formed is obtained.

  The through holes 11H formed in the laminated body 10B are subjected to etching treatment by immersing them in an etching solution that dissolves the insulating sheet 11 as shown in FIG. Then, the etching solution comes into contact with the insulating sheet 11 from the pattern hole 13H, and the dissolution proceeds from both sides in the thickness direction, and the hole penetrates near the center. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20A, the inner surface of the through hole 11H formed by etching in the insulating sheet 11 is inclined by an angle θ (for example, 45 ° to 50 ° when the insulating film 16 is polyimide). Further, the narrowest portion 55 formed in the central portion in the thickness direction has the largest diameter φ1 of the openings on both sides, and has the smallest constricted shape.

In the above, the etching agent for etching the front surface side metal layer 16A and the back surface side metal layer 19A is appropriately selected according to the material constituting these metal layers, and these metal layers are made of, for example, copper. In this case, an aqueous ferric chloride solution can be used.
Moreover, as an etching solution for etching the insulating sheet 11, an amine-based etching solution, a hydrazine-based aqueous solution, a potassium hydroxide aqueous solution, or the like can be used. By selecting the etching processing conditions, the insulating sheet 11 can be used. In addition, a tapered through hole 11H having a smaller diameter from the back surface to the front surface can be formed.
Then, the resist film 12A and the resist film 13A are removed from the laminated body 10B in which the through holes 11H are formed to obtain the laminated body 10C shown in FIG.

Next, the laminated body 101 which consists of the metal sheet 71 provided with the insulating layer 70 is prepared. (Fig. 8)
As a material constituting the insulating layer 70, an etchable polymer material is preferably used, and more preferably polyimide.
As the metal constituting the metal sheet 71, copper having good electrical conductivity is preferable because it is used as a common electrode for electroplating, can be selectively removed by short-time etching, and is easily available.
For example, a laminated polyimide sheet in which a metal layer made of, for example, copper is laminated on both surfaces that are commercially available can be used as the laminated body 101.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9, a resist layer 60 </ b> A is formed on the surface of the laminate 101 on the metal sheet 71 side.
Here, as a material for forming the resist layer 60A, exposure can be performed through the through holes of the insulating sheet to form pattern holes, and the thickness of the insulating layer can be arbitrarily set, and the electrode structure formed thereby A liquid resist is preferable in that the height of the surface electrode portion 16 in the body 15 can be selected. Specific examples include a liquid resist (product name: THB-150N) manufactured by JSR Corporation.

  Thus, the side surface of the resist layer 60A of the laminate 101 in which the resist layer 60A is formed and the surface side metal layer 16A of the laminate 10C in which the through holes 11H are formed are laminated and integrated so as to be laminated as shown in FIG. A body 10D is obtained.

Next, exposure is performed through the through-hole 11H of the laminate 10D to form a pattern hole 60H in the resist layer 60 and expose the metal sheet 71 on the bottom surface of the pattern hole 60H in the resist layer as shown in FIG. .
By exposing the resist layer 60 in this way, the pattern hole 16H formed in the back surface side metal layer 19A is used as an exposure mask, and the exposure area is further reduced by the narrowest portion 55 of the through hole 11H. The pattern hole 60H formed in the layer 60 is smaller than the through hole 16H formed in the surface side metal layer 16A, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG.
Further, when the through hole 11H is formed in the insulating sheet 11, the resist layer is formed by making the opening diameter of the through hole 19H formed in the back side metal layer 19A smaller than the through hole 16H formed in the front side metal layer 16A. It is also possible to make the opening diameter of the pattern hole 60H formed in 60 smaller than the through hole 16H of the surface side metal layer 16A.
Further, as shown in FIG. 20C, an exposure mask 140 having an opening 141 corresponding to the pattern hole 60H of the resist layer 60 to be formed on the surface of the laminated body 10D is laminated, and the opening of the exposure mask 140 is formed. The pattern hole 60 </ b> H may be formed in the resist layer 60 by performing exposure through the 141.
In this case, by making the opening diameter of the opening 141 formed in the exposure mask 140 smaller than the through hole 16H of the surface side metal layer 16A, the pattern hole 60H having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the through hole 16H is advantageously formed. can do.
In the example of FIG. 20C, the pattern hole 60H having the opening diameter φ2 is formed using the exposure mask 140 having the opening 141 having the opening diameter φ2.

In the laminated body 10D in which the through holes 11H and the pattern holes 60H are thus formed, as shown in FIG. 12, the back surface of the electrode structure 15 to be formed on the surface of the back surface side metal layer 19A of the laminated body 10D. A resist film 29A for plating in which a plurality of pattern holes 29H are formed according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode portion 17 is formed.
Here, as a material for forming the resist film 29A, various materials used as a photoresist for plating can be used, but a photosensitive dry film resist is preferable.
In this way, the electrode structure forming recess 10K including the through hole 19H, the through hole 11H, the through hole 16H, and the pattern hole 60H is formed.

Next, the laminate 10D is subjected to an electrolytic plating process using the metal sheet 71 as an electrode to fill each of the electrode structure forming recesses 10K with a metal, thereby forming an electrode structure 15 as shown in FIG. A laminate 10E provided with the metal electrode portion 15B for forming is obtained.
As a metal constituting the metal electrode portion for forming the electrode structure 15, the electrical conductivity is good, and the surface side metal layer and the back side metal layer can be selectively etched by etching, for example, Nickel is preferred. Specifically, it is preferable to use a plating solution containing nickel sulfamate.
Here, when the metal filled in the recess 10K for forming the electrode structure is filled up to the upper part of the pattern hole 29H of the resist film 29A for plating, or the metal formed in each recess of the electrode structure When the height of the electrode portion is not constant, the height of the metal electrode portion can be made constant by polishing the surface side of the laminate 10E. By performing this polishing operation, the thickness of the back surface electrode portion 17 in the formed electrode structure 15 becomes constant, and accordingly, the height variation of each electrode structure 15 is reduced, which is preferable.

Next, the resist layer 29A is removed from the laminated body 10E including the metal electrode portion 15B for forming the electrode structure 15, and then the back-side metal layer 19A is subjected to an etching process, as shown in FIG. The back surface side metal layer 19A is removed, and the back surface electrode portion 17 is formed.
A ferric chloride-based etchant or the like can be used for the etching treatment of the back side metal layer 19A. For example, by using a ferric chloride-based etching solution and performing etching for a short time at 50 ° C. for 30 seconds, the back electrode portion 17 is hardly etched and only the back side metal layer 19A is selectively removed. be able to.

Next, as shown in FIG. 15, a coating film 22 made of a highly conductive metal or the like is formed on the surface of the back electrode portion 17 by performing chemical plating or the like.
And according to the pattern corresponding to the electrode area | region where the to-be-inspected electrode in all or some integrated circuits formed in the circuit apparatus was arrange | positioned in the laminated body in which the coating film 22 was formed in the surface of the back surface electrode part 17. A support body 25 having a plurality of openings 25H is prepared.
An adhesive (for example, polyimide varnish) is thinly applied to one side of the support 25, and the position where the adhesive application surface and the back electrode portion 17 of the laminate 10E are formed is disposed in the opening 25H of the support 25. Thus, the laminated body 10F provided with the support body 25 laminated and integrated at appropriate positions was obtained. (Fig. 16)
Thereafter, a protective resist film 14A is formed so as to cover the entire surface of the back electrode portion in the opening 25H of the support 25. The protective resist film 14A is preferably a liquid resist (product name: THB-150N) manufactured by JSR Corporation.
Thereafter, the protective film 40A is formed so as to cover the entire surface of the support 25 of the laminated body 10F and the protective resist film 14A. (Fig. 17)

  Next, the insulating layer 70 on the metal sheet 71 of the laminated body 10F is removed. When the insulating layer 70 is made of polyimide, an amine-based etching solution, a hydrazine-based aqueous solution, a potassium hydroxide aqueous solution, or the like can be used.

The metal sheet 71 is removed from the stacked body 10F from which the insulating layer 70 has been removed by etching. (Fig. 18)
A ferric chloride-based etching solution or the like can be used for the etching process.

  The resist layer 60A is peeled from the laminate 10F from which the metal sheet has been removed. The resist layer is stripped under normal stripping conditions.

A ferric chloride-based etching solution or the like can be used for the etching process of the surface side metal layer 16A with respect to the stacked body from which the resist layer is peeled and the surface side metal layer 16A is exposed. For example, by using a ferric chloride-based etching solution and performing etching for a short time at 50 ° C. for 30 seconds, the surface electrode portion 16 is hardly etched and only the surface-side metal layer 16A is selectively removed. be able to.
By removing the front surface side metal layer 16A, an electrode structure 15 having a front electrode portion 16, a short-circuit portion 19, and a back electrode portion 17 that are electrically insulated from each other is formed. (Fig. 19)

  The protective film 40 and the resist layer 29A were removed from the laminate 10F on which the electrode structure 15 was formed, and thus the sheet-like connector shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 was obtained.

[Circuit inspection probe and circuit device inspection device]
FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the structure of an example of the circuit device inspection apparatus according to the present invention. The circuit device inspection apparatus includes a plurality of integrated circuits formed on a wafer. The electrical inspection is performed in a wafer state.

This circuit device inspection apparatus has a circuit inspection probe 1 that electrically connects each of the electrodes 7 to be inspected of the wafer 6 as a circuit device to be inspected to a tester. In this circuit inspection probe 1, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 22, a plurality of inspection electrodes 21 are provided on the surface (in accordance with a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode 7 to be inspected in all integrated circuits formed on the wafer 6. The inspection circuit board 20 is formed on the lower surface in the drawing, and an anisotropic conductive connector 30 is disposed on the surface of the inspection circuit board 20. The surface of the anisotropic conductive connector 30 (in the drawing) On the lower surface), a sheet-like connector 10 having a configuration shown in FIG. 1 is arranged in which a plurality of electrode structures 15 are arranged according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrodes 7 to be inspected in all integrated circuits formed on the wafer 6. Has been.
The sheet-like connector is held in a state where the anisotropic conductive connector 30, the electrode structure 15 and the conductive portion 36 are fixed by the guide pins 50 so as to coincide with each other.
Further, a pressure plate 3 for pressing the circuit inspection probe 1 downward is provided on the back surface (upper surface in the drawing) of the circuit inspection probe 1 in the circuit inspection probe 1, and below the circuit inspection probe 1. A wafer mounting table 4 on which the wafer 6 is mounted is provided, and a heater 5 is connected to each of the pressure plate 3 and the wafer mounting table 4.

As a substrate material constituting the inspection circuit board 20, various conventionally known substrate materials can be used. Specific examples thereof include glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin, glass fiber reinforced phenol resin, and glass fiber reinforced type. Examples thereof include composite resin materials such as polyimide resin and glass fiber reinforced bismaleimide triazine resin, and ceramic materials such as glass, silicon dioxide, and alumina.
Further, when configuring an inspection apparatus for performing the WLBI test, it is preferable to use one having a linear thermal expansion coefficient of 3 × 10 ⁻⁵ / K or less, more preferably 1 × 10 ⁻⁷ to 1 × 10. ⁻⁵ / K, particularly preferably 1 × 10 ^{−6 to} 6 × 10 ⁻⁶ / K.
Specific examples of such a substrate material include Pyrex (registered trademark) glass, quartz glass, alumina, beryllia, silicon carbide, aluminum nitride, and boron nitride.

  As shown in FIG. 23, the anisotropic conductive connector 30 has a plurality of openings 32 corresponding to the electrode regions where the electrodes to be inspected are arranged in all the integrated circuits formed on the wafer as the circuit under test. Frame plate 31 and a plurality of anisotropically conductive sheets 35 disposed on the frame plate 31 so as to close one opening 32 and fixed to and supported by the opening edge of the frame plate 31. Has been.

The material constituting the frame plate 31 is not particularly limited as long as the frame plate 31 is not easily deformed and has a rigidity that allows the shape to be stably maintained. For example, a metal material or a ceramic material is used. Various materials such as a resin material can be used. When the frame plate 31 is made of, for example, a metal material, an insulating coating may be formed on the surface of the frame plate 31.
Specific examples of the metal material constituting the frame plate 31 include metals such as iron, copper, nickel, titanium, and aluminum, or alloys or alloy steels in which two or more of these are combined.
Specific examples of the resin material constituting the frame plate 31 include a liquid crystal polymer and a polyimide resin.
When this inspection apparatus is for performing a WLBI (Wafer Level Burn-in) test, the material constituting the frame plate 31 has a linear thermal expansion coefficient of 3 × 10 ⁻⁵ / K or less. It is preferable to use those, more preferably from −1 × 10 ⁻⁷ to 1 × 10 ⁻⁵ / K, particularly preferably from 1 × 10 ⁻⁶ to 8 × 10 ⁻⁶ / K.
Specific examples of such materials include Invar type alloys such as Invar, Elinvar type alloys such as Elinvar, magnetic metal alloys such as Super Invar, Kovar, and 42 alloy, or alloy steel.
The thickness of the frame plate 31 is not particularly limited as long as the shape can be maintained and the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 can be supported. It is preferable that it is 25-600 micrometers, More preferably, it is 40-400 micrometers.

Each of the anisotropic conductive sheets 35 is formed of an elastic polymer material, and is formed according to a pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode 7 to be inspected in one electrode region formed on the wafer 6 that is a circuit device to be inspected. Each of the conductive portions 36 extending in the thickness direction and an insulating portion 37 that insulates each of the conductive portions 36 from each other. Further, in the illustrated example, on both surfaces of the anisotropic conductive sheet 35, protruding portions 38 that protrude from the other surface are formed at locations where the conductive portion 36 and its peripheral portion are located.
In each of the conductive portions 36 in the anisotropic conductive sheet 35, the conductive particles P exhibiting magnetism are densely contained in an aligned state in the thickness direction. On the other hand, the insulating part 37 contains no or almost no conductive particles P.

The total thickness of the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 (thickness in the conductive portion 36 in the illustrated example) is preferably 50 to 2000 μm, more preferably 70 to 1000 μm, and particularly preferably 80 to 500 μm. If this thickness is 50 μm or more, sufficient strength can be obtained for the anisotropic conductive sheet 35. On the other hand, when the thickness is 2000 μm or less, the conductive portion 36 having the required conductive characteristics can be obtained reliably.
The total protrusion height of the protrusions 38 is preferably 10% or more of the thickness of the protrusions 38, more preferably 15% or more. By forming the projecting portion 38 having such a projecting height, the conductive portion 36 is sufficiently compressed with a small applied pressure, so that good conductivity can be reliably obtained.
The protrusion height of the protrusion 38 is preferably 100% or less of the shortest width or diameter of the protrusion 38, more preferably 70% or less. By forming the projecting portion 38 having such a projecting height, the projecting portion 38 is not buckled when pressed, and thus the desired conductivity can be reliably obtained.

As the elastic polymer material forming the anisotropic conductive sheet 35, a heat-resistant polymer material having a crosslinked structure is preferable. Various materials can be used as the curable polymeric substance-forming material that can be used to obtain such a crosslinked polymeric substance, but liquid silicone rubber is preferred.
The liquid silicone rubber may be an addition type or a condensation type, but an addition type liquid silicone rubber is preferred. This addition-type liquid silicone rubber is cured by a reaction between a vinyl group and a Si—H bond, and is a one-pack type (one-component type) made of polysiloxane containing both a vinyl group and a Si—H bond. And two-component type (two-component type) composed of a polysiloxane containing a vinyl group and a polysiloxane containing a Si-H bond. In the present invention, a two-component addition-type liquid silicone is used. It is preferable to use rubber.

In the case where the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 is formed of a cured liquid silicone rubber (hereinafter referred to as “silicone rubber cured product”), the cured silicone rubber has a compression set of 10% or less at 150 ° C. Preferably, it is 8% or less, more preferably 6% or less. If this compression set exceeds 10%, the resulting anisotropic conductive connector tends to generate permanent deformation when it is repeatedly used many times or repeatedly in a high temperature environment. As a result, the chain of the conductive particles P in the conductive portion 36 is disturbed, so that it becomes difficult to maintain the required conductivity.
Here, the compression set of the cured silicone rubber can be measured by a method based on JIS K 6249.

The cured silicone rubber preferably has a durometer A hardness of 10 to 60 at 23 ° C., more preferably 15 to 55, and particularly preferably 20 to 50.
When the durometer A hardness is less than 10, the insulating portions 37 that insulate the conductive portions 36 from each other are easily distorted when pressed, and the required insulation between the conductive portions 36 is maintained. May be difficult. On the other hand, when the durometer A hardness exceeds 60, a pressing force with a considerably large load is necessary to give an appropriate distortion to the conductive portion 36, so that the wafer as the circuit device to be inspected is greatly deformed or broken. Is likely to occur.
In addition, when a silicone rubber cured product having a durometer A hardness outside the above range is used, permanent deformation is likely to occur in the conductive portion 36 when the obtained anisotropic conductive connector is repeatedly used many times. As a result, the chain of conductive particles in the conductive portion 36 is disturbed, and it becomes difficult to maintain the required conductivity.

Moreover, when comprising the inspection apparatus for performing a WLBI test, it is preferable that the cured silicone rubber forming the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 has a durometer A hardness of 25 to 40 at 23 ° C. .
When a silicone rubber cured product having a durometer A hardness outside the above range is used, when the WLBI test is repeatedly performed, permanent deformation is likely to occur in the conductive portion 36. As a result of disturbance in the chain of the conductive particles, it becomes difficult to maintain the required conductivity.
Here, the durometer A hardness of the cured silicone rubber can be measured by a method based on JIS K 6249.

Further, the cured silicone rubber preferably has a tear strength at 23 ° C. of 8 kN / m or more, more preferably 10 kN / m or more, more preferably 15 kN / m or more, particularly preferably 20 kN / m or more. belongs to. In the case where the tear strength is less than 8 kN / m, when the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 is excessively strained, durability tends to be lowered.
Here, the tear strength of the cured silicone rubber can be measured by a method based on JIS K 6249.

In the present invention, an appropriate curing catalyst can be used to cure the addition-type liquid silicone rubber. As such a curing catalyst, a platinum-based catalyst can be used. Specific examples thereof include chloroplatinic acid and salts thereof, platinum-unsaturated siloxane complex, vinylsiloxane-platinum complex, platinum and Examples include known complexes such as 1,3-divinyltetramethyldisiloxane complex, triorganophosphine or phosphite and platinum complex, acetyl acetate platinum chelate, and cyclic diene and platinum complex.
The amount of the curing catalyst used is appropriately selected in consideration of the type of the curing catalyst and other curing treatment conditions, and is usually 3 to 15 parts by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the addition type liquid silicone rubber.
Further, in the addition type liquid silicone rubber, for the purpose of improving the thixotropy of the addition type liquid silicone rubber, adjusting the viscosity, improving the dispersion stability of the conductive particles, or obtaining a substrate having high strength, etc. If necessary, an inorganic filler such as normal silica powder, colloidal silica, aerogel silica, and alumina can be contained.

As the conductive particles P contained in the conductive portion 36, it is preferable to use particles in which the surface of magnetic core particles (hereinafter also referred to as “magnetic core particles”) is coated with a highly conductive metal. Here, “highly conductive metal” refers to a metal having a conductivity of 5 × 10 ⁶ Ω ⁻¹ m ⁻¹ or more at 0 ° C.

The magnetic core particles for obtaining the conductive particles P preferably have a number average particle diameter of 3 to 40 μm.
Here, the number average particle diameter of the magnetic core particles refers to that measured by a laser diffraction scattering method.
When the number average particle diameter is 3 μm or more, it is easy to obtain a conductive portion 36 that is easily deformed under pressure, has a low resistance value, and high connection reliability. On the other hand, when the number average particle diameter is 40 μm or less, the fine conductive portion 36 can be easily formed, and the obtained conductive portion 36 tends to have stable conductivity.
The magnetic core particles preferably have a BET specific surface area of 10 to 500 m ² / kg, more preferably 20 to 500 m ² / kg, particularly preferably 50 to 400 m ² / kg.
If the BET specific surface area is 10 m ² / kg or more, the magnetic core particles have a sufficiently large area that can be plated, so that the magnetic core particles can be reliably plated with a required amount, Accordingly, the conductive particles P having high conductivity can be obtained, and the contact area between the conductive particles P is sufficiently large, so that stable and high conductivity can be obtained. On the other hand, if the BET specific surface area is 500 m ² / kg or less, the magnetic core particles will not be brittle, and will not break when subjected to physical stress, maintaining stable and high conductivity. Is done.

The magnetic core particles preferably have a particle diameter variation coefficient of 50% or less, more preferably 40% or less, still more preferably 30% or less, and particularly preferably 20% or less.
Here, the coefficient of variation of the particle diameter is obtained by the formula: (σ / Dn) × 100 (where σ represents the value of the standard deviation of the particle diameter, and Dn represents the number average particle diameter of the particles). It is what
If the coefficient of variation of the particle diameter is 50% or less, the uniformity of the particle diameter is large, so that the conductive portion 36 with small variation in conductivity can be formed.
As the material constituting the magnetic core particles, iron, nickel, cobalt, those metals coated with copper or resin, and the like can be used, but those having a saturation magnetization of 0.1 Wb / m ² or more are preferable. More preferably, it is 0.3 Wb / m ² or more, particularly preferably 0.5 Wb / m ² or more, and specific examples include iron, nickel, cobalt, and alloys thereof.

  Gold, silver, rhodium, platinum, chromium, etc. can be used as the highly conductive metal coated on the surface of the magnetic core particle, and among these, it is chemically stable and has high conductivity. Gold is preferably used.

In the conductive particles P, the ratio of the highly conductive metal to the core particles [(mass of high conductive metal / mass of core particles) × 100] is 15% by mass or more, preferably 25 to 35% by mass. .
When the ratio of the highly conductive metal is less than 15% by mass, when the anisotropically conductive connector obtained is repeatedly used in a high temperature environment, the conductivity of the conductive particles P is significantly reduced. The conductivity cannot be maintained.
The conductive particles P preferably have a BET specific surface area of 10 to 500 m ² / kg.
If this BET specific surface area is 10 m ² / kg or more, the surface area of the coating layer is sufficiently large, so that a coating layer having a large total weight of the highly conductive metal can be formed. Large particles can be obtained, and since the contact area is sufficiently large between the conductive particles P, stable and high conductivity can be obtained. On the other hand, if the BET specific surface area is 500 m ² / kg or less, the conductive particles do not become brittle, and are less likely to break when subjected to physical stress, maintaining stable and high conductivity. Is done.
Moreover, it is preferable that the number average particle diameter of the electroconductive particle P is 3-40 micrometers, More preferably, it is 6-25 micrometers.
By using such conductive particles P, the obtained anisotropic conductive sheet 35 is easily deformed under pressure, and sufficient electrical contact is obtained between the conductive particles P in the conductive portion 36. It is done.
Further, the shape of the conductive particles P is not particularly limited, but spherical particles, star-shaped particles, or agglomerated particles 2 can be easily dispersed in the polymer substance-forming material. It is preferable that it is a lump with secondary particles.

Such conductive particles P can be obtained, for example, by the following method.
First, magnetic core particles having a required particle diameter are prepared by making a ferromagnetic material into particles by a conventional method or preparing commercially available ferromagnetic particles and classifying the particles.
Here, the particle classification process can be performed by a classification device such as an air classification device or a sonic sieving device.
Specific conditions for the classification treatment are appropriately set according to the number average particle diameter of the target magnetic core particles, the type of the classification device, and the like.
Next, the surface of the magnetic core particle is treated with an acid, and further, for example, washed with pure water to remove impurities such as dirt, foreign matter, and oxide film present on the surface of the magnetic core particle. Conductive particles are obtained by coating the surface of the particles with a highly conductive metal.
Here, hydrochloric acid etc. can be mentioned as an acid used in order to process the surface of a magnetic core particle.
As a method for coating the surface of the magnetic core particles with the highly conductive metal, an electroless plating method, a displacement plating method, or the like can be used, but the method is not limited to these methods.

The method of producing conductive particles by the electroless plating method or the displacement plating method will be described. First, a slurry is prepared by adding acid-treated and washed magnetic core particles to the plating solution, and the slurry is stirred. Then, electroless plating or displacement plating of the magnetic core particles is performed. Next, the particles in the slurry are separated from the plating solution, and then the particles are washed with pure water, for example, to obtain conductive particles in which the surface of the magnetic core particles is coated with a highly conductive metal.
In addition, after a base plating layer is formed on the surface of the magnetic core particles to form a base plating layer, a plating layer made of a highly conductive metal may be formed on the surface of the base plating layer. The method of forming the base plating layer and the plating layer formed on the surface thereof is not particularly limited, but the base plating layer is formed on the surface of the magnetic core particles by the electroless plating method, and then the base plating layer is formed by the displacement plating method. It is preferable to form a plating layer made of a highly conductive metal on the surface of the plating layer.
The plating solution used for electroless plating or displacement plating is not particularly limited, and various commercially available products can be used.

Also, when the surface of the magnetic core particles is coated with a highly conductive metal, the particles may agglomerate to generate conductive particles having a large particle diameter. It is preferable to carry out the treatment, and as a result, conductive particles having an intended particle size can be obtained with certainty.
Examples of the classification device for performing the classification treatment of the conductive particles include those exemplified as the classification device used in the classification treatment for preparing the above-described magnetic core particles.

  It is preferable that the content ratio of the conductive particles P in the conductive portion 36 is 10 to 60%, preferably 15 to 50% in terms of volume fraction. When this ratio is less than 10%, the conductive portion 36 having a sufficiently small electric resistance value may not be obtained. On the other hand, when the ratio exceeds 60%, the obtained conductive portion 36 is likely to be fragile, and the elasticity necessary for the conductive portion 36 may not be obtained.

  The anisotropic conductive connector as described above can be manufactured by a method described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-324600.

  In the above inspection apparatus, the wafer 6 to be inspected is placed on the wafer mounting table 4, and then the circuit inspection probe 1 is pressed downward by the pressure plate 3, whereby the sheet-like connector 10. Each of the surface electrode portions 16 in the electrode structure 15 is in contact with each of the electrodes 7 to be inspected on the wafer 6, and each of the electrodes 7 to be inspected on the wafer 6 is pressurized by each of the surface electrode portions 16. Is done. In this state, each of the conductive portions 36 in the anisotropic conductive sheet 35 of the anisotropic conductive connector 30 includes the inspection electrode 21 of the inspection circuit board 20 and the back electrode portion 17 of the electrode structure 15 of the sheet-like connector 10. Thus, a conductive path is formed in the conductive portion 36 in the thickness direction, and as a result, the electrodes 7 to be inspected of the wafer 6 and the circuit board 20 for inspection are formed. Electrical connection with the inspection electrode 21 is achieved. Thereafter, the wafer 6 is heated to a predetermined temperature by the heater 5 via the wafer mounting table 4 and the pressure plate 3, and in this state, a required electrical inspection is performed on each of the plurality of integrated circuits on the wafer 6. Is done.

According to the circuit inspection probe described above, the sheet-like connector 10 shown in FIG. 1 is provided, so that a stable electrical connection state can be ensured even for the wafer 6 on which the electrodes 7 to be inspected are formed at a small pitch. In addition, the electrode structure 15 in the sheet-like connector 10 does not fall off, and a high durability can be obtained because the thickness of the insulating layer 18 is large.
According to the above inspection apparatus, since the circuit inspection probe 1 having the sheet-like connector 10 shown in FIG. 1 is provided, the wafer 6 on which the electrodes 7 to be inspected are formed at a small pitch is stable. The electrical connection state can be reliably achieved, and the circuit inspection probe 1 has high durability. Therefore, even when a large number of wafers are inspected, a highly reliable inspection can be performed over a long period of time. Can do.
Further, in the sheet-like connector 10 shown in FIG. 1, the durability of the sheet-like connector 10 is further improved by using a metal material having a large thickness, a small thermal linear expansion coefficient, and a high mechanical strength. Even when the circuit inspection probe 1 inspects a large number of wafers, a highly reliable inspection can be performed for a longer period of time.

The circuit device inspection apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the above example, and various modifications can be made as follows.
(1) The circuit inspection probe 1 shown in FIG. 22 and FIG. 23 achieves electrical connection to the electrodes 7 to be inspected of all integrated circuits formed on the wafer 6 at the same time. 6 may be electrically connected to the electrodes 7 to be inspected of a plurality of integrated circuits selected from all the integrated circuits formed in the circuit 6. The number of integrated circuits to be selected is appropriately selected in consideration of the size of the wafer 6, the number of integrated circuits formed on the wafer 6, the number of electrodes to be inspected in each integrated circuit, and the like, for example, 16, 32, There are 64 and 128.
In such an inspection apparatus having a circuit inspection probe, the circuit inspection probe is electrically connected to the inspected electrodes 7 of a plurality of integrated circuits selected from all the integrated circuits formed on the wafer 6. And then repeating the step of performing the inspection by electrically connecting the circuit inspection probes to the electrodes to be inspected 7 of the plurality of integrated circuits selected from the other integrated circuits, whereby the wafer is obtained. All the integrated circuits formed in 6 can be electrically inspected.
According to such an inspection apparatus, when an electrical inspection is performed on an integrated circuit formed on a wafer having a diameter of 8 inches or 12 inches with a high degree of integration, all the integrated circuits are collectively inspected. Compared with the method, it is possible to reduce the number of inspection electrodes and the number of wirings of the inspection circuit board used, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost of the inspection apparatus.

(2) The anisotropic conductive sheet 35 in the anisotropic conductive connector 30 is not electrically connected to the electrode 7 to be inspected in addition to the conductive portion 36 formed according to the pattern corresponding to the pattern of the electrode 7 to be inspected. A conductive portion for non-connection may be formed.
(3) The circuit device to be inspected by the inspection apparatus of the present invention is not limited to a wafer on which a large number of integrated circuits are formed, but a semiconductor chip, a package LSI such as BGA or CSP, or a semiconductor such as CMC. It can be configured as an inspection device for a circuit formed in an integrated circuit device or the like.
(4) The sheet-like connector can be fixed and integrated with an anisotropic conductive sheet or a circuit board for inspection with, for example, a guide pin while being held by a holding body such as a cylindrical ceramic.
(5) In the manufacturing method of the sheet-like connector of the present invention, the second back-side metal layer 17A is not essential, and is omitted and the short hole forming recess 18K and the pattern hole 17H are filled with metal. The back electrode portion 17 integrated with the short-circuit portion 48 may be formed. In this case, if the support 25 is necessary, the support 25 prepared separately and the manufactured sheet-like connector may be laminated and integrated using an adhesive or the like.

(6) In the sheet-like connector of the present invention, for example, a plurality of contact films 51 made of an insulating layer 18B having an electrode structure 15 as shown in FIG. 24 are disposed and supported in each opening 25K of the support 25. The sheet-like connector 110 supported by the body 25 may be used. Further, as shown in FIG. 25, one contact film 51 is arranged so as to cover a plurality of openings 25K of the support 25. May be. By forming the sheet-like connector 111 with a plurality of independent contact films 51 in this way, for example, when the sheet-like connector 10 for wafer inspection having a diameter of 8 inches or more is formed, the expansion and contraction of the contact film 51 due to temperature change is small. Therefore, the positional deviation of the electrode structure 15 is preferably reduced.
Such sheet-like connectors 110 and 111 are formed by dividing the insulating layer 18B into contact films 51 of an arbitrary shape by patterning with resist on the insulating layer 18B and etching in the state of FIG. 20 in the method for manufacturing the sheet-like connector 10 of the present invention. Can be obtained.

It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure of the sheet-like connector which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which expands and shows the electrode structure of the sheet-like connector which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure of the laminated body for manufacturing the sheet-like connector which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the protective film and the resist film for an etching were formed in the laminated body shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the through-hole was formed in the metal layer in a laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the through-hole was formed in the insulating sheet in a laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state from which the resist layer was removed from the laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state of the metal sheet which has an insulating layer. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the resist layer was formed in the metal sheet which has an insulating layer. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state on which the insulating sheet in which the metal sheet and the resist layer were formed was laminated | stacked. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the pattern hole was formed in the resist layer. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the resist layer which has a pattern hole was provided in the laminated body, and the recess for electrode structure formation was formed. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the recess for electrode structure formation was filled with the metal, and the metal electrode part was formed. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the resist layer and the back surface side metal layer were removed from the back surface of the laminated body, and the back surface electrode part was formed. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the coating film was formed in the surface of a back surface electrode part. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the support body was integrated with the laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state by which the resist layer and the protective film were laminated | stacked on the back surface of the laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state from which the insulating layer was removed from the surface of the laminated body, and the surface side metal layer was etched and removed. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state from which the resist layer was removed from the surface of the laminated body. It is sectional drawing for description which expands and shows the state of the through-hole formed in the insulating sheet of a laminated body, and the pattern hole of a resist layer. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure in an example of the inspection apparatus of the circuit apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which expands and shows the probe for a circuit test | inspection in the test | inspection apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view of the anisotropically conductive connector in the probe for circuit inspection shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure in the other example of the sheet-like connector which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure in the other example of the sheet-like connector which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the structure in an example of the conventional probe for circuit inspection. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the manufacture example of the conventional sheet-like connector. It is sectional drawing for description which expands and shows the sheet-like connector in the probe for circuit inspection shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the other example of manufacture of the conventional sheet-like connector. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the other example of manufacture of the conventional sheet-like connector. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the other example of manufacture of the conventional sheet-like connector. It is sectional drawing for description which shows the state of the through-hole formed by the etching from the single side | surface side of the insulating sheet.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Circuit inspection probe 3 Pressure plate 4 Wafer mounting base 5 Heater 6 Wafer 7 Electrode 10 to be inspected 10 Sheet-like connector 10A, 10B, 10C Laminated body 10K Recess 11 for electrode structure formation Insulating sheet 11H Through-hole 12A Resist film 13A Resist film 13H Pattern hole 14A Resist film 15 Electrode structure 16 Surface electrode portion 16A Surface side metal layer 16H Through hole 17 Back surface electrode portion 19A Back surface side metal layer 19H Through hole 19 Holding portion 20 Circuit board for inspection 21 Inspection electrode 25 Support Body 25H opening 26 opening 27A resist layer 27H pattern hole 28A resist layer 28H pattern hole 29A resist layer 29H pattern hole 30 anisotropic conductive connector 31 frame plate 32 opening 35 anisotropic conductive sheet 36 conductive portion 37 insulating portion 38 protruding portion 40A, 40B Protective film 41 Part 48 short-circuit part 50 guide pin 51 contact film 55 narrowest part 60A resist layer 60H pattern hole 70 insulating layer 71 metal sheet 80 anisotropic conductive sheet 81 polyimide sheet 81a through hole 82 metal film 82 photoresist film 83a opening 84 photoresist Film 85 Circuit board for inspection 86 Inspection electrode 90 Sheet-like connector 90A, 90B, 90C Laminate 90K Recess 91 for electrode structure formation Insulating sheet 91A Insulating sheet material 92, 92A, 92B Metal layer 92T Tip diameter 92H Opening 92N Insulating portion 93, 93A Resist film 94A, 94B Resist film 95 Electrode structure 96 Front surface electrode portion 97 Back surface electrode portion 98 Short-circuit portion 98H Through hole 101 Laminated body 110, 111 Sheet-like connectors 120A, 120B, 120C, 120D Laminated body 120K For electrode structure formation 121 First surface-side metal layer 121H Through-hole 122 Second surface-side metal layer 122T Tip diameter 123 Back-side metal layer 123H Opening 123N Insulating portion 124 Insulating layer 124H Through-hole 125 Insulating sheet 127 Surface electrode portion 128 Short-circuit portion 129 Holding part 130 Electrode structure 131 Sheet-like connector P Conductive particle

Claims (5)

A support in which a plurality of openings are formed corresponding to electrode regions in which electrodes to be inspected are arranged in all or some of the integrated circuits formed on the wafer to be inspected, and the surface of the support, An insulating layer disposed and supported so as to close the opening, and a plurality of electrode structures that extend through the insulating layer in the thickness direction, the insulating layer being spaced apart from each other in the surface direction of the insulating layer;
Each of the electrode structures is exposed on the surface of the insulating layer and protrudes from the surface of the insulating layer; a back electrode portion exposed on the back surface of the insulating layer;
A sheet-like connector consisting of a short-circuit portion connected to the back electrode portion, extending through the insulating layer in the thickness direction continuously from the base end of the front electrode portion,
The short-circuit part has a narrowest part having a diameter smaller than the diameters of both end parts in the central part in the thickness direction. 2. A method of manufacturing a sheet-like connector according to claim 1, wherein an insulating sheet having through holes formed on both sides is laminated on a metal sheet through a resist layer, and the resist layer is formed through the through holes of the insulating sheet. To expose the metal sheet on the bottom of the pattern hole,
Production of a sheet-like connector comprising a step of forming an electrode structure by performing electroplating using a metal sheet as an electrode and filling a metal in a pattern hole of a resist layer and a through hole of an insulating sheet Method A circuit inspection probe for electrical connection between a circuit device to be inspected and a tester,
A circuit board for inspection in which a plurality of inspection electrodes are formed corresponding to the electrodes to be inspected of the circuit device to be inspected, an anisotropic conductive connector disposed on the circuit board for inspection, and the anisotropic conductivity A probe for circuit inspection comprising the sheet-like connector according to claim 1 disposed on the connector. The circuit device to be inspected is a wafer on which a large number of integrated circuits are formed,
The anisotropic conductive connector includes a support having an opening corresponding to an electrode region in which an electrode to be inspected in all integrated circuits or a part of integrated circuits formed on a wafer to be inspected, The probe for circuit inspection according to claim 3, further comprising an anisotropic conductive sheet disposed so as to close each opening of the support. A circuit device inspection apparatus comprising the circuit inspection probe according to claim 3.

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