JP2018071991A - socket - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a socket capable of narrowing a contact pitch compared with the conventional pitch.SOLUTION: A socket 1 comprises: an insulation support body 5; and two contact probes 7 supported in parallel by the insulation support body 5. The respective contact probes 7 include: first plungers 10; second plungers 20; and springs 35 for biasing the plungers in mutually separated directions. The first plungers 10 include flange parts 12 for preventing the plungers themselves from coming off from the insulation support body 5. The insulation support body 5 has a space 5h between the flange parts 12 of the two contact probes 7.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a socket used for inspecting a device under test such as a semiconductor integrated circuit.

  When inspecting an inspection object such as a semiconductor integrated circuit, a socket in which a plurality of contact probes are supported in parallel by an insulating support in order to electrically connect the inspection object and the inspection substrate on the measuring instrument side. used. FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of one end of a conventional socket for measuring Kelvin. The Kelvin measurement is a method in which an electric characteristic is measured by bringing a current supply probe and a voltage monitoring probe into contact with an electrode of an inspection object, for example, an electrode bump (see Patent Document 2 below if necessary).

The socket of FIG. 7 has a configuration in which two contact probes 801 are supported in parallel by an insulating support 900, and the contact pitch P1 is expressed by the following equation.
P1 = A + (B × 2) + (C × 2) + (D × 2) Equation 1
However,
A: Minimum thickness of the insulating support 900 B: Clearance between the insulating support 900 and the side surface of the flange portion 812
C: Radius difference between the flange portion 812 and the tip side cylinder portion 824 D: Distance from the side surface of the tip side cylinder portion 824 (the side surface closest to the next tip side cylinder portion 824) to the apex of the peak on the tip surface * The distance D is a distance along the direction connecting adjacent contact probes 801. It may be zero depending on the rotation angle of the distal end side cylindrical portion 824.

JP 2012-149927 A JP 2008-45986 A

  In the above formula 1, as an example, when A = 40 μm, B = 10 μm, C = 15 μm, and D = 0, P1 = 90 μm. In Expression 1, the protrusion of the flange portion 812 corresponding to C directly affects the contact pitch P1, and hinders narrowing of the pitch. Of the above lengths A to D, A and B cannot be made zero by design.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide a socket capable of narrowing a contact pitch as compared with the prior art.

One embodiment of the present invention is a socket. This socket is
An insulating support;
Two contact probes supported in parallel on the insulating support,
Each contact probe
First and second plungers;
A spring that biases the first and second plungers away from each other,
The first plunger has a flange portion for preventing the first plunger from coming off from the insulating support;
The insulating support has a space between the flange portions of the two contact probes.

  The first and second plungers may include proximal ends and a conductive tube that accommodates the spring, and the outer diameter of the conductive tube may be smaller than the outer diameter of the flange portion.

Another aspect of the present invention is a socket. This socket is
An insulating support;
Two contact probes supported in parallel on the insulating support,
Each contact probe
First and second plungers;
A spring that biases the first and second plungers away from each other;
A proximal tube side of the first and second plungers, and a conductive tube that houses the spring;
The first plunger and the conductive tube are combined with each other so as to perform a stroke operation integrally,
The conductive tube has a flange portion for preventing itself and the first plunger from coming off from the insulating support,
The insulating support has a space between the flange portions of the two contact probes.

The insulating support is
A first insulating support having two first guide holes for guiding the tip side of the first plunger of each contact probe;
A second insulating support having two second guide holes for guiding the tip end side of the second plunger of each contact probe;
The distance between the two first guide holes may be smaller than the distance between the two second guide holes.

  The two contact probes may be inclined obliquely so as to approach each other toward the distal end side of the first plunger.

The first plunger has a cylindrical portion having a contact portion at a tip,
The flange portion protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion,
The insulating support may have a round hole having a smaller diameter than the flange portion, which guides the cylindrical portion.

  The first plunger may be for connection with an inspection object, and the second plunger may be for connection with an inspection substrate.

  The flange portion may have a circular cross section perpendicular to the length direction of the first plunger.

  The flange portion may form the outermost peripheral surface of the contact probe.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements, and those obtained by converting the expression of the present invention between methods and systems are also effective as aspects of the present invention.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the socket which can narrow a contact pitch compared with the past can be provided.

FIG. 1A is a front sectional view of a socket 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a front sectional view of the state in which the socket 1 is set on the inspection substrate 9 from the state of FIG. FIG. 1C is a front sectional view of the state in which the inspection object 8 is set in the socket 1 from the state of FIG. The principal part enlarged view of FIG.1 (C). The front sectional view of the socket 2 which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. FIG. 4A is a front sectional view of the socket 3 according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. FIG. 4B is a front sectional view of the state in which the socket 3 is set on the inspection substrate 9 from the state of FIG. FIG. 4C is a front sectional view of the state in which the inspection object 8 is set in the socket 3 from the state of FIG. The principal part enlarged view of FIG.4 (C). The front sectional view of socket 4 concerning Embodiment 4 of the present invention. The expanded sectional view of the end of the conventional socket for Kelvin measurement.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same or equivalent component, member, etc. which are shown by each drawing, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted suitably. In addition, the embodiments do not limit the invention but are exemplifications, and all features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1A is a front sectional view of socket 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The vertical direction is defined with reference to FIG. The socket 1 is for Kelvin measurement, and one of two contact probes 7 having the same configuration and supported in parallel by the insulating support 5 is used as a current supply probe and the other as a voltage monitoring probe. FIG. 1A shows a state in which the contact probe 7 is at the upper limit position with respect to the insulating support 5.

  The insulating support 5 is a combination of three components (all of which are, for example, resin molded bodies) of a retainer 5a as a first insulating support, a pin block 5b, and a pin plate 5c as a second insulating support. The contact probe 7 is passed through a through hole 5d as a first guide hole formed in the retainer 5a, a through hole 5e formed in the pin block 5b, and a through hole 5f formed in the pin plate 5c. Hold the posture. The lower end portion of the through hole 5f is a small diameter hole portion 5g as a second guide hole. The through holes 5d to 5f are all round holes including the small-diameter hole portion 5g, and can be formed with high positional accuracy by a drill. The pitch of the through holes 5d of the retainer 5a is narrower than the pitch of the through holes 5e of the pin block 5b and the pitch of the through holes 5f of the pin plate 5c. The thickness of the partition wall 5i between the through holes 5d is the smallest width in a range where the flange portions 12 do not contact each other, and is thinner than the thickness of the corresponding portion of the conventional example shown in FIG. The through holes 5d to 5f have inner diameters with a margin that allows the contact probe 7 to be inclined. A space 5h is provided between the retainer 5a and the pin block 5b. The space 5h has a vertical length that includes a stroke range of a flange portion 12 of the first plunger 10 described later.

  The contact probe 7 includes a first plunger 10, a second plunger 20, a conductive tube 30, and a spring 35. The 1st plunger 10 is a connection component with the test object 8 shown to FIG. 1 (C), and consists of electroconductive metal bodies, such as copper or a copper alloy. The 2nd plunger 20 is a connection component with the test | inspection board | substrate 9 shown in FIG.1 (C), and consists of electroconductive metal bodies, such as copper or a copper alloy. The conductive tube 30 is a component that houses the proximal end side of the first plunger 10, the proximal end side of the second plunger 20, and the spring 35, and is made of a conductive metal body such as copper or a copper alloy. . The spring 35 is a coil spring formed of a general conductive metal material such as a piano wire or a stainless wire, for example, and biases the first plunger 10 and the second plunger 20 in a direction away from each other, and the first plan. A contact force between the inspection object 8 and the inspection substrate 9 is applied to the jar 10 and the second plunger 20. The inspection object 8 is, for example, a semiconductor integrated circuit in which electrodes are arranged at a predetermined interval, and in the illustrated case, electrode bumps 8a are arranged at a predetermined interval. The inspection substrate 9 has electrode pads 9a connected to a measuring instrument (not shown) at a predetermined interval.

  The 1st plunger 10 has the front end side cylindrical part 11, the flange part 12, and the base end side cylindrical part 13 in an order from the front end side. The front end of the front end side cylindrical portion 11 is here an eight-part contact portion 11a. The distal end side cylindrical portion 11 passes through the through hole 5d of the retainer 5a and is guided by the through hole 5d. The flange portion 12 has a diameter larger than that of the through hole 5d, and prevents the first plunger 10 from coming out upward from the retainer 5a. The flange portion 12 has a circular cross section perpendicular to the length direction of the first plunger 10. Here, the flange portion 12 has a cylindrical shape. The outer peripheral surface of the flange portion 12 forms the outermost peripheral surface of the contact probe 7. The flange portion 12 is located in a space 5h between the retainer 5a and the pin block 5b. The lower surface of the flange portion 12 engages (contacts) with the upper end of the conductive tube 30. The proximal end cylindrical portion 13 is located inside the conductive tube 30. The base end side cylindrical portion 13 has a constricted portion 13a partially reduced in diameter in the middle portion in the length direction. The constricted portion 13a engages with the convex portion 30a of the conductive tube 30, whereby the first plunger 10 and the conductive tube 30 are combined with each other so as to perform a stroke operation integrally.

  The second plunger 20 has a distal end side cylindrical portion 21 and a proximal end side cylindrical portion 22 in order from the distal end side. The distal end of the distal end side cylindrical portion 21 is a contact portion 21a that is tapered in a tapered shape. The front end side cylindrical portion 21 passes through the small diameter hole portion 5g of the pin plate 5c and is guided by the small diameter hole portion 5g. The proximal end cylindrical portion 23 is located inside the conductive tube 30. The proximal-side cylindrical portion 23 is larger in diameter than the distal-end-side cylindrical portion 21, and the second plunger 20 is pulled downward from the conductive tube 30 by engaging with the throttle portion 30 b of the conductive tube 30. To prevent.

  The conductive tube 30 has a predetermined number of convex portions 30a protruding inward. The convex portions 30a are formed, for example, by hitting the outer peripheral surface of the conductive tube 30 with a punch, and here, four convex portions 30a are provided at intervals of 90 degrees in the circumferential direction. The convex portion 30 a engages with the constricted portion 13 a of the first plunger 10 and enables the conductive tube 30 to be stroked integrally with the first plunger 10. The lower end portion of the conductive tube 30 is a throttle portion 30b. The drawn portion 30b is a portion whose diameter is reduced by, for example, drawing so as to be smaller in diameter than the proximal end side cylindrical portion 22 of the second plunger 20. The upper end of the conductive tube 30 is engaged (contacted) with the lower end surface of the flange portion 12 of the first plunger 10. The conductive tube 30 has a larger diameter than the small-diameter hole 5g of the pin plate 5c, and does not come out downward from the pin plate 5c. The outer diameter of the conductive tube 30 is equal to or smaller than the outer diameter of the first plunger 10 (the same outer diameter in the illustrated example). The spring 35 is in the conductive tube 30, and the upper end engages (contacts) with the lower end surface of the proximal end side cylindrical portion 13 of the first plunger 10, and the lower end is the proximal end side cylindrical portion of the second plunger 20. Engage (abut) with the upper end surface of the portion 22.

  FIG. 1B is a front sectional view of the state in which the socket 1 is set on the inspection substrate 9 from the state of FIG. The lower surface of the pin plate 5 c is in contact with the upper surface of the inspection substrate 9. Further, the contact portion 21a of the tip side cylindrical portion 21 of the second plunger 20 comes into contact with the electrode pad 9a of the inspection substrate 9, and the second plunger 20 moves from the protruding state shown in FIG. Retreat against the force. As shown in FIG. 1B, the distance L1 between the two through holes 5d of the retainer 5a is smaller than the distance L2 between the two small diameter holes 5g of the pin plate 5c. Accordingly, the two contact probes 7 are inclined obliquely toward the tip side of the first plunger 10 (upward) so as to approach each other.

  FIG. 1C is a front sectional view of the state in which the inspection object 8 is set in the socket 1 from the state of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. The contact portion 11a of the distal end side cylindrical portion 11 of the first plunger 10 contacts the electrode bump 8a of the inspection object 8, and the first plunger 10 is attached to the spring 35 from the protruding state shown in FIG. Retreats with the conductive tube 30 against the forces. In the state shown in FIG. 1C, the electrode bump 8a of the inspection object 8 and the electrode pad 9a of the inspection substrate 9 are electrically connected by the contact probe 7, and the inspection object 8 can be inspected.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the contact pitch P2 in the present embodiment is the thickness A of the partition wall 5i between the two through holes 5d of the retainer 5a (the range where the flange portions 12 are not in contact with each other or more than the minimum wall thickness in processing). Is equal to or less than the minimum width), or less than a length obtained by adding the thickness A to twice the clearance between the distal end side cylindrical portion 11 and the partition wall 5i, and is compared with the conventional example shown in FIG. Thus, a narrow pitch can be realized. Incidentally, the distance from the side surface of the distal end side cylindrical portion 11 to the apex of the peak of the distal end surface corresponding to D in Formula 1 of the contact pitch P1 of the conventional example shown in FIG. In any of the examples, it is not considered because it is out of the control range.

  In the present embodiment, as in the conventional example shown in FIG. 7, when a partition is provided between the flange portions 12 of the two first plungers 10, the partition is between the two through holes 5d of the retainer 5a. Since it is necessary to make it thinner than 5i, if the partition wall 5i is made the minimum thickness in processing, the partition between the flange portions 12 cannot be processed (the partition is not formed). On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the partition wall 5j between the conductive tubes 30 can be established by setting the space 5h between the flange portions 12 and tilting the contact probe 7 diagonally. The possible height of the partition wall 5j varies depending on the inclination of the contact probe 7, the outer diameter of the conductive tube 30, and the thickness of the partition wall 5j. In addition, since the partition between the flange parts 12 does not exist, as a condition for the flange parts 12 to come into contact with each other and not to be short-circuited, the thickness A of the partition wall 5 i is equal to the radial difference C between the distal end side cylindrical part 11 and the flange part 12. On the other hand, it is necessary to satisfy A> C × 2.

  The method for assembling the socket 1 is as follows. In the first method, the retainer 5a and the pin block 5b are fixed to each other by screwing or the like, and the contact probe 7 is inserted into the through holes 5e and 5d from the lower surface side of the pin block 5b. The pin plate 5c is fixed to the lower surface of the pin block 5b by screwing or the like so as to penetrate the hole 5f. In the second method, the pin block 5b and the pin plate 5c are fixed to each other by screwing or the like, and the contact probe 7 is inserted into the through holes 5e and 5f from the upper surface side of the pin block 5b. The retainer 5a is fixed to the upper surface of the pin block 5b by screws or the like so as to penetrate the through hole 5d. In the case of the second method, the pin block 5b and the pin plate 5c are not separate parts but may be integrally formed products.

  According to the present embodiment, the following effects can be achieved.

(1) A space 5h is provided between the retainer 5a and the pin block 5b so that there is no partition between the flange portions 12 of the first plungers 10 of the two contact probes 7, and the two contact probes 7 are located upward. 2, while providing the partition walls 5j between the conductive tubes 30, the contact pitch P2 is changed to the thickness of the partition walls 5i between the two through holes 5d of the retainer 5a. It can be narrowed to equal to or less than A (the radius difference between the tip side cylindrical portion 11 and the flange portion 12 is excluded from the contact pitch P2, and the pitch can be narrowed).

(2) Since the posture of the contact probe 7 is stable in a tilted state, the posture of the contact probe 7 in the range of the gap with the insulating support 5 as in the prior art is compared with that of an indefinite configuration compared to the tip side. The tip position of the cylindrical portion 11 is determined with high accuracy, and the contact is stabilized. Thereby, it can suppress that a contact point is near the side of the electrode bump 8a and the side surface of the electrode bump 8a is shaved.

(3) The contact probe 7 is easy to manufacture because the cross section perpendicular to the length direction is circular and has no directionality, and the workability of combining the contact probe 7 with the insulating support 5 is good. Further, even if a rotational force is applied to the contact probe 7, the risk of damaging the insulating support 5 is small.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of the socket 2 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The socket 2 according to the present embodiment is different from that according to the first embodiment in that the conductive tube 30 has a smaller diameter than the flange portion 12, and is identical in other points. By making the conductive tube 30 smaller in diameter than the flange portion 12, it is possible to suppress the conductive tube 30 from interfering with the upper edge portion of the partition wall 5j of the pin block 5b and the inner surface of the through hole 5f of the pin plate 5c. The present embodiment can achieve the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 4A is a front sectional view of the socket 3 according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. FIG. 4B is a front sectional view of the state in which the socket 3 is set on the inspection substrate 9 from the state of FIG. FIG. 4C is a front sectional view of the state in which the inspection object 8 is set in the socket 3 from the state of FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG.

  In the socket 3 of the present embodiment, the first plunger 10 is hollow, and a spring (not shown) is in the first plunger 10. The insulating support has a two-part configuration of a pin block 5b and a pin plate 5c, and the distal end side cylindrical portion 11 of the first plunger 10 is guided in the through hole 5e of the pin block 5b. The base end side cylindrical portion 13 of the first plunger 10 has a base end as a throttle portion 13b, and the second plan is similar to the throttle portion 30b (FIG. 1A) of the conductive tube 30 of the first embodiment. The jar 20 is prevented from coming off. The space 5h is provided between the pin block 5b and the pin plate 5c. The through hole 5e of the pin block 5b and the small diameter hole 5g of the pin plate 5c are coaxial, and the two contact probes 7 are supported substantially parallel to each other (parallel to the vertical direction).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the contact pitch P3 in the present embodiment is the thickness A (for example, the minimum thickness in processing) of the partition wall 5j of the pin block 5b, and between the tip side cylindrical portion 11 and the partition wall 5j. By the gap B, P3 = A + (B × 2). Unlike the contact pitch P1 (formula 1) of the conventional example shown in FIG. 7, the contact pitch P3 is narrowed because the radius difference between the front end side cylindrical portion 11 and the flange portion 12 (the protruding length of the flange portion 12) does not enter. Has been. Other points of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 6 is a front sectional view of the socket 4 according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. In the socket 4 of the present embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, the first plunger 10 does not have the flange portion 12, and the conductive tube 30 has the flange portion 31. The insulating support has a two-part configuration of a pin block 5b and a pin plate 5c, and the distal end side cylindrical portion 11 of the first plunger 10 is guided in the through hole 5e of the pin block 5b. The space 5h is provided between the pin block 5b and the pin plate 5c. The through hole 5e of the pin block 5b and the small diameter hole 5g of the pin plate 5c are coaxial, and the two contact probes 7 are supported substantially parallel to each other (parallel to the vertical direction). The taper part (inclination part) 21b provided in the intermediate part of the front end side cylinder part 21 of the 2nd plunger 20 has a role which reduces the inclination of the 2nd plunger 20 at the time of a test | inspection. Other points of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment. The effect of narrowing the pitch in this embodiment is the same as that in the third embodiment.

  The present invention has been described above by taking the embodiment as an example. However, it is understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made to each component and each processing process of the embodiment within the scope of the claims. By the way.

  The space 5h only needs to be formed in a portion above the through hole 5e and the partition wall 5j of the pin block 5b, and the pin block 5b is a retainer above the other portion, that is, a portion other than the through hole 5e and the partition wall 5j. You may extend until it contacts the lower surface of 5a.

1 to 4 socket, 5 insulating support, 5a retainer, 5b pin block, 5c pin plate, 5d through hole (first guide hole), 5e, 5f through hole, 5g small diameter hole (second guide hole), 5h space 5i, 5j Bulkhead, 7 Contact probe, 8 Inspection object, 8a Electrode bump, 9 Inspection substrate, 9a Electrode pad, 10 First plunger, 11 Tip side cylindrical part, 11a Contact part, 12 Flange part, 13 End side cylinder part, 13a Constriction part, 13b Restriction part, 20 Second plunger, 21 Front end side cylinder part, 21a Contact part, 21b Taper part (inclination part), 22 Base end side cylinder part, 30 Conductive tube, 30a Convex part, 30b Restriction part, 31 Flange part

Claims (9)

An insulating support;
Two contact probes supported in parallel on the insulating support,
Each contact probe
First and second plungers;
A spring that biases the first and second plungers away from each other,
The first plunger has a flange portion for preventing the first plunger from coming off from the insulating support;
The insulating support is a socket in which a space is formed between the flange portions of the two contact probes.   2. The socket according to claim 1, further comprising a conductive tube that accommodates proximal ends of the first and second plungers and the spring, wherein an outer diameter of the conductive tube is smaller than an outer diameter of the flange portion. . An insulating support;
Two contact probes supported in parallel on the insulating support,
Each contact probe
First and second plungers;
A spring that biases the first and second plungers away from each other;
A proximal tube side of the first and second plungers, and a conductive tube that houses the spring;
The first plunger and the conductive tube are combined with each other so as to perform a stroke operation integrally,
The conductive tube has a flange portion for preventing itself and the first plunger from coming off from the insulating support,
The insulating support is a socket in which a space is formed between the flange portions of the two contact probes. The insulating support is
A first insulating support having two first guide holes for guiding the tip side of the first plunger of each contact probe;
A second insulating support having two second guide holes for guiding the tip end side of the second plunger of each contact probe;
The socket according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a distance between the two first guide holes is smaller than a distance between the two second guide holes.   The socket according to claim 4, wherein the two contact probes are inclined obliquely toward each other toward the distal end side of the first plunger. The first plunger has a cylindrical portion having a contact portion at a tip,
The flange portion protrudes radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion,
The socket according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the insulating support has a round hole having a smaller diameter than the flange portion, which guides the cylindrical portion.   The socket according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first plunger is for connection with an inspection object, and the second plunger is for connection with a substrate for inspection.   The socket according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the flange portion has a circular cross section perpendicular to the length direction of the first plunger.   The socket according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the flange portion forms an outermost peripheral surface of the contact probe.