JPH06308154A - Testing device and test method using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a testing device by which a high-frequency semiconductor device can be measured accurately. CONSTITUTION:A signal transmission line 12 made of a conductive material and a ground electrode 11 are formed on the upper surface of an insulation substrate 15. On the other hand, a detection electrode 14 made of a conductive material is formed on the lower surface of the substrate 15, and the line 12 and electrode 14 are connected with each other through a through-hole 13. While the electrode 14 is close to or is brought into contact with an insulator protection film on a wiring of which a high-frequency semiconductor device is formed on a semiconductor substrate, a high-frequency signal is inputted/ outputted to test the high-frequency characteristics of the device. Thus the high-frequency semiconductor device can be measured accurately.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a high frequency semiconductor device inspection apparatus and an inspection method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the widespread use of high-frequency equipment in general, demand for high-frequency semiconductor devices used in high-frequency equipment is increasing, and at the same time, establishment of an inspection method for high-frequency semiconductor devices becomes an urgent task. There is.

An example of the above-described conventional inspection device and inspection method for a high-frequency semiconductor device will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a conventional high frequency amplifier circuit. 101 and 102 are field effect transistors (hereinafter referred to as FETs), 111 and 112 are resistors, 121 and 122 are capacitors, and 13
Reference numerals 1 and 132 are inductors, 141 is an RF signal input terminal (hereinafter referred to as an input terminal), 142 is an RF signal output terminal (hereinafter referred to as an output terminal), 151 and 152 are power supply terminals, and 161 is a ground.

First, the DC bias will be described. A voltage of 5V is applied to the power supply terminals 151 and 152, and the FETs 101 and 1 are connected via the inductors 131 and 132.
02 is supplying current. In addition, FET 101 and 1
02 has its source grounded and its gate has resistors 111 and 1
Since it is grounded by 12, the gate-source voltage is set to 0V. On the other hand, the FETs 101 and 102 are DC-separated by the capacitor 121.

Next, the high frequency characteristics will be described. At high frequencies, the capacitors 121 and 122 have low impedance, and the inductors 131 and 132 have high impedance. Therefore, when an RF signal is input from the RF signal input terminal 141, this signal is amplified by the FET 101,
It is transmitted to the FET 102 at the next stage through the capacitor 121. Further, this signal is amplified by the FET 102, passes through the capacitor 122, and is output from the output terminal 142.

FIG. 2 shows an example in which the circuit of FIG. 1 is formed on a semiconductor substrate. In FIG. 2, 201 is the FET1 of FIG.
01, 202 is FET 102, 211 is resistor 11
1, 212 is a resistor 112, and 221 is a capacitor 1
21, reference numeral 222 corresponds to the capacitor 122, reference numeral 231 corresponds to the inductor 131, and reference numeral 232 corresponds to the inductor 132. 241 is an input pad corresponding to the input terminal 141, 242 is an output pad corresponding to the output terminal 142, 2
51 is a power supply pad corresponding to the power supply terminal 151, 252 is a power supply pad corresponding to the power supply terminal 152, 261 is ground 1
A ground pad corresponding to 61. The capacitors 221 and 222 have an MIM structure and use the second layer metal as the upper electrode.

FIG. 3 shows a conventional example of the RF inspection method for the semiconductor device of FIG. In FIG. 3, 301 and 302 are high-frequency measuring probes manufactured by Cascade Micro (hereinafter referred to as high-frequency probes), 311 is an input contact electrode, 312 is an output contact electrode, 313 and 314 are ground contact electrodes. The high frequency probe is designed to hold a characteristic impedance of 50Ω up to its tip. By inputting the signal from the input pad and measuring the signal from the output pad, the input / output characteristics of the entire circuit can be accurately evaluated by bringing this high-frequency probe into contact with the corresponding pad on the semiconductor chip.

[0009]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional configuration, the characteristics of the entire circuit can be evaluated, but the characteristics of each block or each FET cannot be evaluated.
As a solution to this problem, there is a method of evaluating the characteristics of each block by connecting an electrode pad to point A in FIG. 1 and bringing the electrode into contact with the pad, but the pad itself has a large stray capacitance. Therefore, there is a problem in that the characteristics of the entire circuit are affected, accurate measurement is difficult, and the chip area is expanded and cost is increased by incorporating the semiconductor chip in a dedicated pad.

In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an inspection apparatus and an inspection method using the inspection apparatus which can easily measure the accurate characteristics of a semiconductor circuit without changing the circuit pattern.

[0011]

In order to solve the above problems, the inspection device and inspection method of the present invention have the following configurations.

(1) A signal transmission line made of a conductive material and a ground electrode are formed on an upper surface of an insulating substrate, and a detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on a lower surface of the insulating substrate, and the signal transmission line is formed. The detection electrode is connected through a through hole, and the ground electrode and the detection electrode are connected by a conductive material through the through hole.

(2) A signal transmission line made of a conductive material and a ground electrode are formed on the upper surface of the insulating substrate, and a spiral detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on the lower surface of the insulating substrate. The transmission line and the detection electrode are connected through a through hole, and the ground electrode and the detection electrode are connected by a conductive material through the through hole.

(3) A signal transmission line made of a conductive material is formed inside the insulating substrate, and a detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on the lower surface of the insulating substrate, and the signal transmission line and the detection electrode are formed. Is connected by a conductive material through a through hole,
The entire surface of the insulator substrate other than the detection electrode is covered with a conductive material to connect the ground electrode and the ground electrode.

(4) The insulating protective film on the wiring of the high frequency semiconductor device formed on the semiconductor substrate may be formed on the insulating protective film.
The detection electrode of the inspection device described above is brought into close proximity or in contact, and a high frequency signal is input / output from the detection electrode of the inspection device to inspect a high frequency characteristic.

[0016]

The present invention has the following functions due to the above-mentioned structure.

(1) By bringing the detection electrode of the inspection device into close proximity to or in contact with the protective film on the wiring of the semiconductor device,
The RF signal in the circuit can be stably measured, and the inspection accuracy of the high frequency semiconductor device can be improved (corresponding to claims 1 and 4).

(2) By making the detection electrode spiral, the purity of the measured signal can be improved, and the inspection accuracy of the high frequency semiconductor device can be improved (corresponding to claims 2 and 4).

(3) Since the noise signal from the outside is shielded by covering the entire surface of the insulator substrate other than the detection electrode with the ground electrode, the purity of the signal measured by the detection electrode can be increased and the high frequency The inspection accuracy of the semiconductor device for use can be improved (corresponding to claims 3 and 4).

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An inspection apparatus and an inspection method according to embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 4 shows claims 1 and 2 of the present invention.
(A) of the inspection device in the first embodiment corresponding to
It is a top view, (b) sectional drawing in AA 'of FIG. 1, and (c) bottom view, respectively.

4 (a) (b) (c), 11 is a ground electrode, 12 is a signal transmission path, 13 is a through hole, 14 is a detection electrode, and 15 is a ceramic support substrate. Ground electrode 1
1, the signal transmission path 12, the through hole 13, and the detection electrode 14 are all made of an alloy containing 90% or more of gold.
No. 4 has improved wear resistance by joining a 20 μm thick tungsten alloy on the surface.

FIG. 5 shows a state where the high-frequency probe is in contact with the input / output pad, and the detection electrode of the inspection device of FIG.
The state where it is in contact with the protective film on the upper metal layer of the IM capacitor 221 is shown.

The operation of the inspection apparatus configured as described above will be described below with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 401 is the inspection device according to claim 1, 301 and 302 are high frequency probes, 311 is an input contact electrode, 312 is an output contact electrode, 313 and 314 are ground contact electrodes, and a power supply is used. Power is separately supplied to the pads 251 and 252 by wire bonding or the like.

As shown in FIG. 5, the detection electrode 14 of the inspection device 401 is brought into contact with the MIM capacitor 221 via the protective film on the metal wiring of the semiconductor chip to magnetically detect the ground electrode 14 and the metal wiring ( Capacitors) couple. That is, when the detection electrode 14 detects the magnetic flux emitted from the metal wiring (capacitor), a part of the RF signal power at the point A in FIG. 1 is supplied to the detection electrode 14 side.
At this time, the characteristics of the preceding circuit block can be known by measuring the RF signal power transmitted to the detection electrode 14 side.

Conversely, an RF signal is input from the detection electrode 14 of the inspection device 401 through a metal wiring (capacitor), and the RF signal power at the output pad 242 is supplied while the operation of the circuit block at the preceding stage is stopped. If measured, the characteristics of the circuit block in the subsequent stage can be known.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to know the characteristics of each circuit block in the circuit having the multistage structure. Particularly, in the first embodiment, since the detection electrode 14 is formed in a spiral shape, a larger signal can be taken out as compared with the case where only the strip line is used, so that the measurement accuracy is improved.
However, even if the detection electrode 14 is not formed in a spiral shape but is formed in a linear shape, the same effect as that of forming a spiral shape can be obtained.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 6 shows claim 1 of the present invention.
(A) Top view of the inspection apparatus in the second embodiment corresponding to Nos. 2, 3 and 4, (b) A sectional view taken along the line BB 'of FIG. 1, (c)
It is a bottom view, respectively. 6 (a) (b) (c), 21 is a ground electrode, 22 is a signal transmission path, 23 is a through hole, 24 is a detection electrode, and 25 is a ceramic support substrate. The ground electrode 21, the signal transmission path 22, the through hole 23, and the detection electrode 24 are all made of an alloy containing 90% or more of gold, and the detection electrode 24 has wear resistance by bonding a 20 μm thick tungsten alloy on the surface. Is increasing.

In the inspection apparatus configured as described above, the inspection method and operation are the same as in the first embodiment, but the entire surface of the ceramic support substrate 25 except the detection electrode 24 is covered with a conductive material and grounded, so that the conductive state is maintained. The accuracy of the signal is improved as compared with the case where the signal is not covered with a conductive material.

Also in this case, the detection electrode 24 is spiral, but it may be linear.

[0032]

As described above, the present invention has the following effects due to the above configuration.

(1) The RF signal in the circuit can be stably measured by bringing the detection electrode of the inspection device of the present invention close to or in contact with the protective film on the wiring of the semiconductor device, and the high frequency semiconductor can be measured. The inspection accuracy of the device can be improved.

(2) Since the noise signal from the outside is shielded by covering the entire surface of the insulating substrate other than the detection electrode with the ground electrode, the purity of the signal measured by the detection electrode can be increased and the high frequency The inspection accuracy of the semiconductor device for use can be improved.

(3) By making the detection electrode spiral, the purity of the measured signal can be increased, and the inspection accuracy of the high frequency semiconductor device can be increased.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a conventional semiconductor device.

FIG. 2 is a top view of a conventional semiconductor device.

FIG. 3 is a top view showing a conventional semiconductor device inspection method.

4A is a top view of the inspection apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4B is a sectional view of the inspection apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. The bottom view of the inspection apparatus in an Example

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an inspection method using the first embodiment of the present invention.

6A is a top view of the inspection apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6B is a sectional view of the inspection apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. The bottom view of the inspection apparatus in an Example

[Description of Reference Signs] 11 ground electrode 12 signal transmission path 13 through hole 14 detection electrode 15 ceramic support substrate 21 ground electrode 22 signal transmission path 23 through hole 24 detection electrode 25 ceramic support substrate 101 FET 102 FET 111 resistor 112 resistance Device 121 Capacitor 122 Capacitor 131 Inductor 132 Inductor 141 RF signal input terminal 142 RF signal output terminal 151 Power supply terminal 152 Power supply terminal 161 Ground 201 201 FET 202 FET 211 Resistor 212 Resistor 221 Capacitor 222 Capacitor 231 Inductor 232 Inductor 241 Input pad 242 Output Pad 251 Power supply pad 252 Power supply pad 261 Ground pad 301 High frequency measurement probe manufactured by Cascade Micro 302 302 Cascade Micro High frequency measuring probe 311 Input contact electrode 312 Output contact electrode 313 Grounding contact electrode 314 Grounding contact electrode 401 Inspection device

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A signal transmission path made of a conductive material and a ground electrode are formed on an upper surface of an insulating substrate, and a detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on a lower surface of the insulating substrate. An inspection apparatus, wherein a detection electrode is connected through a through hole, and the ground electrode and the detection electrode are connected by a conductive material through the through hole. 2. A signal transmission path made of a conductive material and a ground electrode are formed on the upper surface of an insulating substrate, and a spiral detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on the lower surface of the insulating substrate.
An inspection apparatus, wherein the signal transmission path and the detection electrode are connected through a through hole, and the ground electrode and the detection electrode are connected by a conductive material through the through hole. 3. A signal transmission path made of a conductive material is formed inside an insulating substrate, a detection electrode made of a conductive material is formed on the lower surface of the insulating substrate, and the signal transmission path and the detection electrode are formed. An inspection apparatus, comprising: connecting with a conductive material through a through hole; covering the entire surface of the insulator substrate other than the detection electrode with a conductive material; and connecting the detection electrode and the ground electrode. 4. The detection electrode of the inspection device according to claim 1 is brought close to or in contact with the insulator protective film on the wiring of the high frequency semiconductor device formed on the semiconductor substrate, and A method for inspecting a semiconductor device, which comprises inspecting a high frequency characteristic by inputting and outputting a high frequency signal from the detection electrode.