JP3057071B1 - Wafer test equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

A wafer measuring board and a probe card can be electrically connected by employing a special Zif type connector. SOLUTION: A Zif type connector 106 includes a header 107 radially attached to a probe card 104,
Receptacle 10 attached to wafer measurement board
8 is comprised. Receptacle 108 is open / close lever 1
When the rotary shaft 117 is rotated by swinging the rotary shaft 12, the internal movable contact is opened and closed, and is brought into contact or non-contact with the header contact of the header 107 inserted into the receptacle 108.
By rotating a ring 113 provided rotatably about the center of the probe card 104 and simultaneously swinging a plurality of open / close levers 112 in the same direction, a Zif connector header 107 and a Zif connector receptacle 108 are provided.
Connection and disconnection.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wafer testing apparatus for electrically connecting a wafer measuring board and a probe card using a zero insertion force type connector (hereinafter, simply referred to as a Zif type connector).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG.
01, a test head 202 is connected to the test head 202 to determine whether the wafer W is good or not.
The wafer measurement board 203 mounted on the side and the probe card 204 mounted on the wafer prober 201 are pressed against the pogo contact pins 206 protruding from the front and back of an insert ring 205 provided between them, thereby pressing the inside of the test head 202. Test circuit 2
07 and the probe card 204 are electrically connected.

Conventionally, a probe card 204 attached to the wafer prober 201 has a pogo contact pin 206 on the back surface of an insert ring 205 by engaging the probe card 204 with a locking portion (not shown) provided on the wafer prober 201. Was pressed against On the other hand, the wafer measurement board 2 attached to the test head 202 side
03 is a test head 2
By pressing with 02, the ring is pressed against the pogo contact pin 206 on the surface of the insert ring 205.

In order to connect the wafer measuring board 203 and the probe card 204, pogo contact pins 206 are used.
Probe card 204 because the number of
In this case, it is necessary to support the probe card 204 with a very large force on the insert ring 205 side by a locking portion provided on the wafer prober 201. It is necessary to push down the wafer measuring board 203 toward the wafer prober 201 with a very large force.

However, thousands of pogo contact pins 206
There are the following disadvantages in the conventional method using. (1) Poor contact between the probe card and the pogo contact pin Since the connection method by point contact between the pogo contact pin 206 and the electrode pad on the probe card 204 is used,
Poor contact is possible. (2) Consumption of Pogo Contact Pins Due to Impurities in the Air Since the pogo contact pins 206 are exposed, they are likely to be consumed because they are stroked with impurities attached. (3) Deterioration of the internal spring of the pogo contact pin As the number of times of use increases, the internal spring which becomes a movable part deteriorates. (4) Physical high-precision connection design and fitting adjustment Since connection by the pogo contact pins 206 is point contact, high-precision alignment is required, and high-precision design in the X and Y-axis directions is required. Pogo contact pin 206
Since there are variations in spring pressure, high-precision design and adjustment in the Z-axis direction are also required. (5) Reinforcement design of each part that withstands the pressure of the pogo contact pin If the pressure of one pogo contact pin is 4000 for 70-80 g, for example, the total pin pressure becomes about 300 kg, and the reinforcement design becomes large.

In order to connect the wafer measuring board 203 and the probe card 204, the pogo contact pins 20 are used.
It is conceivable to use a Zif-type connector which is a connector that does not require a press contact force as in 6 and has a literally zero insertion force.

For example, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. Hei 4-21881,
It describes that a performance board and a test head are connected using a Zif type connector.

Taking the Zif connector described in the above publication as an example, as shown in FIG. 11, the Zif connector has an elongated rectangular tubular connector body 401 and a conductive pin 402.
The movable contact 404 and the fixed contact 405 are provided at the position of the hole 403 into which is inserted. By moving the operation plate 407 in the longitudinal direction indicated by the arrow of the connector main body 401, the conductive pin 402 inserted from the hole 403 provided in the connector main body 401 is moved to the movable contact 404 and the fixed contact 405.
And a non-contact state by moving in the opposite direction.

To simultaneously operate a plurality of Zif connectors 400 having 60 to 80 pins, as shown in FIG. 12, the movable plate 50 is attached to the end 407B of the operation plate 407.
The operation plates 407 of the plurality of connector bodies 401 are connected via the movable plate 500 by engaging the protrusions 501 protruding from the plate surface of No. 0. The eccentric cam 503 is turned by the turning operation of the opening / closing lever 502, and the movable plate 5 is turned by this turning operation.
00 is engaged with the eccentric cam 503,
The movable plate 5 is engaged with the pin 504 and the eccentric cam 503.
00 is attached so as to be able to advance and retreat in the longitudinal direction of the connector main body 401.

If this Zif-type connector can be used to connect the probe card to the wafer measurement board, it is extremely easy to mount the wafer measurement board on the test head even if the number of electrical connection terminals is increased. The advantage is that there is no need to reinforce the measurement board and the like.

[0011]

However, the use of the existing Zif-type connector as described above increases the size. Therefore, as described below, it is necessary to attach the Zif-type connector to a probe card having a small area. It cannot be applied to the connection between the probe card and the wafer measurement board.

(1) Upsizing The Zif-type connectors must be arranged in parallel on the driving mechanism of the operation plate 407. For this reason, it is necessary to arrange as many Zif connectors as possible on a circular probe card. To do this, use at least two probe cards.
It is necessary to arrange Zif-type connector bodies back to back in each region so that the operation plate 407 faces outward, and to provide a drive mechanism for the operation plate 407 on both sides so that the operation plate 407 faces outward. In this case, a group of Zif connectors arranged in a square arrangement on a circle and two drive mechanisms are arranged, so that a dead space occurs and an increase in size is inevitable. It is also possible to arrange a large number of Zif-type connector bodies radially on the probe card. However, in this case, the lines connecting the end portions of the operation plates become rings, and the operation plates in the ring arrangement are collectively arranged. It is difficult to realize a mechanism for moving in the radial direction. That is, the conventional structure Zif
Simply miniaturizing the type connector cannot be used for a probe card.

(2) High-precision alignment is required. The conductive pins 402 are inserted into the holes 40 of the Zif type connector body 401.
3, the conductive pin 402 and the hole 403
And high-precision alignment is required. Further, if the positioning is not sufficiently accurate, the conductive pin 402 comes out of the hole 403 and comes into contact with the Zif connector main body 401 when the conductive pin 402 is inserted, so that the Zif connector main body 40 is not inserted.
1 and the conductive pin 402 are damaged. This is especially true for probe cards that are finely designed.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and to electrically connect a wafer measurement board and a probe card using a Zif type connector compatible with the probe card. An object of the present invention is to provide a wafer test apparatus.

[0015]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a wafer test for electrically testing a wafer by electrically connecting a probe card mounted on a wafer prober and a wafer measuring board mounted on a test head. The wafer testing apparatus is characterized in that a Zif-type connector in which a plurality of contacts are simultaneously opened and closed by a rotational movement is radially provided between the probe card and the wafer measurement board.

According to the present invention, a Zif-type connector in which a plurality of contacts are simultaneously opened and closed by a rotary motion is employed. If a large number of such connectors are radially mounted on a circular probe card, a large number of connectors are provided by one rotary motion. Simultaneous opening and closing of all contacts of one connector becomes possible. Further, since the wafer measurement board and the probe card are connected and disconnected by the Zif type connector, there is no need to reinforce each part, and the apparatus can be downsized.

Specifically, the present invention provides a test head for generating a signal for a wafer test, a wafer measurement board mounted on the test head for transmitting the signal, and a wafer measurement board via the wafer measurement board. A wafer prober connected to the test head, a probe card attached to the wafer prober and having a plurality of needles for applying a signal from the wafer measurement board to the wafer, and a probe card or a wafer measurement board. A header that is radially arranged on one side and constitutes one of a Zif connector having a plurality of header contacts electrically connected to a plurality of needles of the probe card or a signal output terminal of the wafer measurement board; and According to the arrangement of the header on either the probe card or the wafer measurement board A movable contact that is mounted in a radial pattern, fits with the header when the test head is connected to the wafer prober, and comes into contact or non-contact state by opening and closing the header contact of the fitted header; And a receptacle that constitutes the other of the Zif connectors having a rotating shaft that opens and closes by rotation.

Further, an opening / closing lever attached to the rotating shaft and swinging about the rotating shaft to rotate the rotating shaft, and swinging around the probe card to swing the opening / closing lever simultaneously. A wafer test apparatus includes a ring and an actuator for rotating the ring.
Although it is necessary to detect the open / closed state of the movable contact, it is preferable to conduct an electrical test from a test apparatus to the probe card via a Zif-type connector in order to surely perform the detection. The rotation of the ring may be performed manually, but is preferably performed automatically by an actuator.

The present invention will be described with respect to a case where a header of a Zif type connector is attached to a probe card and a receptacle is attached to a wafer measuring board, for example. The attached Zif-type connector header is fitted to the Zif-type connector receptacle attached to the wafer measurement board. By rotating the ring, the opening / closing levers attached to each receptacle are simultaneously swung in the same direction to rotate the rotation axis of each receptacle by a predetermined angle.
Due to this rotation, the movable contact that has been opened closes and comes into contact with the header contact. As a result, the test head and the wafer prober are electrically connected.

According to the present invention, a Zif-type connector is used in which a movable contact is opened and closed by rotating a rotating shaft by swinging an opening and closing lever, and the movable contacts of the Zif-type connectors arranged radially are simultaneously rotated by rotating a ring. The Zif-type connector can be used to connect or disconnect the probe card and the wafer measurement board, which have no space, to the open / close state. In addition, with a simple structure in which a ring that swings a plurality of open / close levers at once is attached, even if a large number of Zif connectors are arranged on the probe card, the connection and disconnection of the Zif connector can be performed with a single touch by rotating the ring. I can do it.

It is to be noted that the mounting position of the header and the receptacle of the Zif connector may be reversed, but it is expected that the size will be considerably increased. Also,
When the receptacle is mounted on the probe card, the pattern routing becomes longer. Therefore, in order to use the Zif-type connector while utilizing the pattern of the conventional probe card, the above-described exemplary embodiment is more preferable.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a wafer test apparatus according to the present invention will be described below.

As shown in FIG. 2, the wafer test apparatus mainly comprises an IC test head 101 for generating a signal for a wafer test, and a wafer prober 103 connected to the test head 101. Test head 101
Is mounted with a wafer measurement board 105 for transmitting a signal necessary for a test from the test circuit 102 mounted on the board. The wafer prober 103 has a large number of electrode pads on the front surface and a large number of conductive needles 109 connected to the electrode pads on the back surface in order to apply a signal from the wafer measurement board 105 to the wafer W. The probe card 104 is mounted. This wafer measurement board 1
05 and the probe card 104 are electrically connected by a Zif-type connector 106 to test the wafer W.

The Zif type connector 106 includes a plurality of headers 107 mounted on the probe card 104 on the wafer prober 103 side, and a wafer measurement board for transmitting a signal required for a test from the test circuit 102 mounted on the test head 101. 105 and a plurality of receptacles 108 attached thereto. The header 107 is arranged radially on the surface of the probe card 104 and has a plurality of header contacts for transmitting signals from the test circuit 102 to the needle 109 of the probe card 104. When the test head 101 and the wafer prober 103 are connected, the receptacle 108 is inserted into a position indicated by a dotted line on the wafer prober 103 side, fitted with the header 107, and has a movable contact for connecting to the header contact. Movement switches the movable contact to a contact state or a non-contact state with the header contact.

As shown in FIG. 3, the header 107 of the Zif connector has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, as will be described later.
A large number are radially attached around the center of the probe card 104 around the surface of the probe card 104. The center of the front surface of the probe card 104 is a needle area 110 on which various components such as relays are mounted, and the center of the back surface has a large number of needles L arranged and mounted in accordance with the arrangement of the electrode pads on the wafer W.

As shown in FIG. 4, the receptacle 108 of the Zif connector has a rectangular parallelepiped shape like the header 107, and is supported on the wafer measurement board 105 by the circular base plate 111 (see FIG. 2). A number of receptacles 108 are radially mounted around the base plate 111 in accordance with the arrangement of the header 107 mounted on the probe card 104, with the left and right sides in the longitudinal direction being the same direction. An open / close lever 112 is swingably attached to a radially outer end of each receptacle 108. The free end of each opening / closing lever 112 is engaged with an opening / closing ring 113 disposed above the base plate 111, and by rotating around the center of the opening / closing ring 113 as a center of rotation, the opening / closing levers 112 can swing simultaneously. ing. As will be described later, this swing causes the rotation shaft to rotate, and all the movable contacts open and close simultaneously.

When the test head 101 is lowered and mounted at a predetermined position on the wafer prober 103, the receptacle 108 mounted on the wafer measurement board 105 and the header 107 mounted on the probe card 104 are fitted to each other, as shown in FIG. The state shown in FIG. By rotating the opening / closing lever 112 attached to the receptacle 108, the header contacts of the plurality of headers 107 fitted to each other and the receptacle 1
The movable contact 08 is simultaneously in a contact state or a non-contact state. Here, the Zif-type connector receptacle 108 employs a floating mechanism that is movable by 0.5 mm in the X and Y axes with respect to the Zif-type connector base plate 111. With this mechanism, the header 107 mounted on the probe card 104 can be easily fitted.

FIG. 6 shows a receptacle 1 of a Zif type connector.
It is explanatory drawing of 08, (a) shows a front view, (b) shows a side view.

The receptacle 108 includes a housing 115
And movable contacts 116 arranged opposite to each other in the housing 115.
And a rotary shaft 117 inserted between the movable contacts 116. The movable contact 116 is opened and closed by rotating the rotary shaft 117.

The receptacle 108 is constituted by an elongated rectangular parallelepiped insulative housing 115, a lower opening 130 into which a header contact 122 of the counterpart header 107 is inserted, and a test head connection upper part formed at the upper part. Of the printed circuit board 120 is inserted. A plurality of movable contacts 116 are arranged in the housing 115 so as to face each other in two rows along the longitudinal direction. Movable contact 116
Are biased toward each other by their own spring force. An insulating rotating shaft 117 penetrating between the movable contacts 116 in the arrangement direction is rotatably attached to the housing 115, and the movable contact 116 can be opened and closed by the rotating shaft 117. The opening / closing lever 112 is attached to the rotating shaft 117.

By rotating the opening / closing lever 112, the rotating shaft 117 is rotated to open and close the movable contact 116. By rotating the opening / closing lever 112 from the open position to the closed position, the header contact 122 is moved between the movable contacts 116.
Is present, the header contact 122 is sandwiched between the movable contacts 116 to be in a contact state. When the movable contact 116 is pushed open by the reverse operation, the header contact 122 becomes the movable contact 11.
6 is in a non-contact state.

The movable contact 116 is fixed to an upper portion of the housing 115, and fixed contacts 119 connected to the movable contact 116 project from the upper opening 131 in a back-to-back C-shape in two rows. The printed circuit board 1 connected to the test head between the protruding two rows of fixed contacts 119 facing each other.
20 is inserted and fixed, and the fixed contact 119 and the printed circuit board 1 are fixed.
20 is in a contact state.

FIG. 7 shows the header 107 of the Zif connector L.
3A is a front view, and FIG. 3B is a side view.

The header 107 is the same as the receptacle 1 described above.
08 and comes into contact with the receptacle 108 or non-contact with the rotation of the rotating shaft 117. The header 107 is constituted by an insulating housing 121 having an elongated rectangular parallelepiped shape like the receptacle 108, and a lower opening 132 for attaching to the probe card is formed at a lower portion thereof, and the receptacle 10 is formed at an upper portion thereof.
8 is formed with a head portion 124 inserted into the lower opening 130. A plurality of header contacts 122 are arranged in the upper part of the housing 121 so as to oppose each other in two rows in the longitudinal direction, and come into contact with or non-contact with the movable contact 116 of the receptacle 108. A pressing contact 123 that is continuous with the header contact 122 protrudes from the lower opening 132 in an eight-shape facing two rows. The protruding two-row opposing contact points 123 are fixed to the probe card with screws 125 so as to be in contact with the electrode pads on the surface of the probe card.

Incidentally, the length of the housings 115 and 121 of the Zif type connector is about 60 mm, and the height is about 10 to 10 mm.
The size is 18 mm, the width is about 10 mm, and the length of the opening / closing lever 112 is about 50 mm, which is suitable for a multi-pin probe card or a wafer measurement board having a diameter of 300 mm or more. The number of pins of one Zif connector is 72 to 80 pins.

FIG. 8 shows the header 1 of the Zif connector 106.
07 shows a state where the receptacle 108 is fitted. The shoulder 124 a of the head 124 is brought into contact with the lower opening edge 108 a of the receptacle 108, and the head 124 is advanced to a predetermined depth in the lower opening 130 of the receptacle 108. When the opening / closing lever 112 is rotated, the movable contact 116 of the receptacle 108 comes into contact with the header contact 122 of the header 107, and the probe card 104 is electrically connected to the test head. Further, the probe card is brought into a non-contact state, and the probe card and the test head are separated.
At this time, pressure for connection is applied horizontally between the movable contact 116 and the header contact 122, but no vertical pressure is applied from the test head side to the probe card 124 side. The header 107 can be inserted into and removed from the receptacle 108 with almost no resistance. In order to maintain the contact state, there is no need to apply any pressing force from the test head side to the probe card side.

The operating mechanism for operating the lever 112 is as follows.
As shown in FIG. 1, an annular guide 1 attached to the test head side with the ring 113 locking each lever 112 is provided.
The swing angle of the lever 112 is controlled by slidably fitting a guide groove 136 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the lever 35 and sliding the ring 113. As shown in FIG. 9, for example, a driving unit that slides the ring 113 clockwise or counterclockwise applies an couple to the ring 113 using an actuator 137 such as an air cylinder to rotate the ring 113. The guide 135 shown in FIG.
The ring 113 can be fitted into the guide groove 136 by removing the upper guide 135a, which can be divided into upper and lower parts and fixed by screws 137, from the lower guide 135b. When the Zif connector is fitted, the contacts are inside the housing 115.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the probe card 10 of the Zif connector 106 on which a number of headers 107 are mounted.
4 is fixed to a predetermined position of the wafer prober 103 by mechanical transfer. The test head 101 is lowered with respect to the wafer prober 103, and the Zif type connector base plate 111 is inserted into the dotted line of the wafer prober 103,
The Zif type connector base plate 111 is fixed to the wafer prober 103 side. At this time, the wafer measurement board 1
The Zif connector header 107 on the 05 side and the Zif connector receptacle 108 on the probe card 104 are in a fitted state, but the contacts (movable contacts and header contacts) of the Zif connector 106 are in a non-contact state.

Opening / closing ring 1 by actuator 137
By rotating the opening / closing lever 13, many open / close levers 112 are simultaneously moved from the open position to the closed position. As a result, the Zif connector 106 is connected to the contacts, and the probe card 104 is electrically connected to the test head 101. By using all of the conventional Pogo contact pins as the Zif connector 106, the pin pressure becomes zero.

As described above, according to the embodiment, the following various effects are exhibited. Zif-type connectors whose contacts are opened and closed by rotating motion are arranged radially, and the contacts of many Zif-type connectors can be opened and closed at the same time by rotating the ring. Applicable to connection with board. The wiping method (rubbing the contacts) is the best to eliminate the contact failure, but the Zif connector 106 of the embodiment employs the wiping method. Also, when the Zif type connector header 107 is attached and fixed to the probe card 104, the contact failure by the wiping method is employed, so that the contact failure can be eliminated as much as possible. Since the Zif-type connector base plate 111 and the Zif-type connector receptacle 108 employ a floating mechanism, high-precision design in the X and Y-axis directions is eliminated. Further, the tolerance in the Z direction (up and down) can secure a larger allowable range as compared with the pogo contact pin. When the Zif connector is fitted, the contact terminals 116 and 122 are inside the housing 115, so that impurities in the air do not adhere. Therefore, the problem caused by the attachment of the impurity is solved. Since the Zif connector 106 is close to 0 g, the reinforcement design of each part is eased.

In the present embodiment, the connection between the probe card and the wafer measurement board has been described. The Zif connector of the embodiment can be widely used as a substitute for a multipolar signal connector. It is also possible to use a cascade connecting in series in the vertical direction.

[0043]

According to the present invention, the Zif type connector whose contacts are opened and closed by a rotary motion is radially provided, and the contacts of a large number of Zif type connectors can be opened and closed at the same time by rotation. It can be applied to the connection between a probe card with a probe and a wafer measurement board. Also, Zi
Since the wafer measurement board and the probe card are electrically connected by using the f-type connector, the reinforcement design of each part of the apparatus can be greatly eased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of an operation mechanism of an operation lever according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a wafer test apparatus according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 shows a Z attached to a probe card according to an embodiment.
It is explanatory drawing of the header of an if type connector, (a) is a front view, (B) is a top view.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of a receptacle of the Zif connector mounted on the wafer measurement board according to the embodiment;
(A) is a front view, (B) is a plan view.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a fitted state of the header and the receptacle according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a detailed view of a Zif connector receptacle according to the embodiment, wherein (a) is a front view and (B) is a side view.

FIG. 7 is a detailed view of the Zif connector header according to the embodiment, wherein (a) is a front view and (B) is a side view.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a fitted state of the Zif connector according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory view of a ring rotating mechanism according to the embodiment.

10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams of a wafer testing apparatus according to a conventional example, in which FIG. 10A is a schematic explanatory diagram, and FIG. 10B is a plan view of a probe card and a front view of a fitted state.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a Zif connector according to a known example.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of an operation mechanism of a Zif connector according to a known example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 104 Probe card 106 Zif type connector 107 Header 108 Receptacle 112 Opening / closing lever 113 Ring 117 Rotation axis

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/66 G01R 1/06 G01R 31/26

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A test for generating a signal for a wafer test.
A head mounted on the test head for transmitting the signal;
(C) connecting to the test head via the measurement board and the wafer measurement board;
A wafer prober connected to the wafer prober and the wafer measurement board mounted on the wafer prober.
Have multiple needles that apply signals from the
Probe card, and either the probe card or the wafer measurement board
One or more of the probe cards
Needle or signal output terminal of the wafer measurement board
Zero with multiple header contacts electrically connected to the connector
To configure one of the insertion force type connectors
The probe card or the wafer measurement board
Or the other side to fit radially according to the arrangement of the header
Connection between the test head and the wafer prober.
At times, it is fitted with the header, and the header of the fitted header is
A movable contact that comes into contact or non-contact by opening and closing the contact
A point and a rotating shaft that opens and closes the movable contact by rotation.
The other of the zero insertion force type connectors
A receptacle to be configured , attached to the rotating shaft, and swinging about the rotating shaft.
An opening / closing lever for rotating the rotating shaft, and rotating the opening / closing lever about the probe card center.
A ring including a ring that swings simultaneously and an actuator that rotates the ring.
C test equipment.