JPH11163059A - Apparatus and method of inspecting semiconductor wafer for integrated circuit - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce size and cost of a device and raise accuracy and productivity of the device. SOLUTION: An integrated circuit semiconductor wafer 2 has circuits 4 under test with terminals. The circuits 4 are disposed like checkers on a plane. Probes of probe cards 8A-8D are connected to the terminals under test. The apparatus comprises a holder 5 for holding the integrated circuit semiconductor wafer 2, expansion-adjusted frame 6 facing the semiconductor wafer 2 held with the holder 5, and probe cards 8A-8D fixed to the frame 6. The circuits 4 under test of the wafer 2 are sectioned and set to test regions 15A-15D on the wafer surface 3 and faced at the test regions 15A-15D.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for inspecting an integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate suitable for use in inspecting the performance of an integrated circuit formed on a semiconductor wafer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a semiconductor manufacturing plant or the like,
Semiconductor thin plate for semiconductor integrated circuit (hereinafter referred to as wafer)
In order to confirm whether each of the plurality of integrated circuits formed above has the function and performance as designed, an electrical function evaluation test is performed. Traditionally, this type of evaluation test
This is done by bringing the external connection terminals formed in the integrated circuit into contact with the stylus connected to the test circuit, but since a single integrated circuit has a large number of external connection terminals Usually, the inspection is performed using a so-called probe card, which is a printed circuit board in which a stylus is previously arranged so as to face the plurality of external connection terminals.

[0003] As this inspection method, for example, a probe card is provided on a surface facing a wafer, and a probe card is provided on the other surface of a wafer fixed on a movable board movable on an XY plane. A frame on which a test auxiliary substrate having a part of a test circuit is disposed is movably arranged in the Z-axis direction, and the moving plate is sequentially moved in accordance with the arrangement pitch of the integrated circuit, and each time, the frame approaches the wafer. The stylus is in contact with the external connection terminal.

[0004]

However, the conventional wafer inspection apparatus as described above has the following problems. Wafers have become larger in diameter to improve productivity, and as the degree of integration of integrated circuits has increased dramatically due to technological advances, the moving distance of the moving plate has increased, resulting in larger and more expensive equipment. Had become.

Further, as the degree of integration of the integrated circuit increases, the number of external connection terminals also increases, and the degree of integration also increases. As a result, higher precision is required for the device, which also increases the cost of the device. Had become. In addition, when the moving distance of the moving board increases, the time consumed for the inspection increases, and the productivity per unit area of the floor of an expensive semiconductor factory decreases.

On the other hand, in order to solve these problems, it is conceivable to arrange a stylus on one large probe card so as to face external connection terminals of a large number of integrated circuits. In the case, when performing the inspection by raising or lowering the temperature of the wafer, there is a problem that a relative position between the stylus and the external connection terminal is shifted due to a difference in a linear expansion coefficient between the wafer and the probe card. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and even if the diameter of a wafer, which is a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit, is increased and the degree of integration of the integrated circuit is increased, the apparatus can be reduced in size and cost. It is an object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor thin plate inspection device for an integrated circuit and an inspection method thereof that contribute to improvement in accuracy, improvement in productivity and improvement in productivity.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention employs the following constitution. 2. The integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuit to be inspected having the terminals to be inspected is arranged in a grid pattern in one direction on a plane and in a direction orthogonal to the one direction. In a semiconductor thin plate inspection apparatus for an integrated circuit, which performs a characteristic inspection of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit by contacting a stylus of a probe card with the terminal to be inspected with respect to the thin plate,
A holding portion for holding the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate, a frame disposed opposite to the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate held by the holding portion, and a plurality of the probe cards fixed to the frame, The plurality of probe cards,
A plurality of circuits to be inspected of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit are divided into a plurality of areas to be inspected on the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit, and are arranged at positions facing the respective areas to be inspected. It is assumed that.

Therefore, according to the apparatus for inspecting a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit of the present invention, first, a plurality of circuits to be inspected of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit are divided into a plurality of inspection areas on the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. I do. Next, a stylus of a probe card arranged at a position facing each of the inspection areas,
The characteristic inspection of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit can be performed by contacting the terminal to be inspected of the circuit to be inspected.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the inspection apparatus for an integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate according to the first aspect, the frame has a line having substantially the same linear expansion coefficient as that of the semiconductor thin plate for the integrated circuit. It is characterized by having a configuration having an expansion coefficient.

Therefore, according to the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate inspection apparatus of the present invention, when the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate expands or contracts due to a temperature change, the frame also undergoes substantially the same expansion or contraction. Thus, when the position of the terminal to be inspected moves due to expansion or contraction of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit, the stylus of the probe card fixed to the frame also moves by the same amount.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for inspecting a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit, wherein the circuits to be inspected having terminals to be inspected are arranged in a grid on one plane in one direction and a direction orthogonal to the one direction. A method for inspecting the characteristics of a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit by contacting a stylus of a probe card to the terminal to be inspected with respect to the semiconductor thin plate for a circuit. A plurality of circuits to be inspected are divided into a plurality of areas to be inspected on the surface of the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate, and a plurality of probe cards are arranged so as to face the respective inspected areas of the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate, The characteristic inspection is performed by holding these probe cards in the same positional relationship on the one plane and relatively moving them along the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. It is characterized in that the.

Therefore, according to the method of inspecting a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit of the present invention, first, a plurality of circuits to be inspected of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit are divided into a plurality of inspection areas on the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. I do. Next, the probe cards arranged at positions facing the respective inspection areas are moved while maintaining the same positional relationship on one plane, and the stylus is brought into contact with the inspection terminal of the inspection circuit. Thus, a characteristic test of the integrated circuit can be performed.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a semiconductor thin plate inspection apparatus for an integrated circuit and an inspection method thereof according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. Here, for example, description will be made using an example in which a stylus is brought into contact with a bonding pad of an integrated circuit formed on a wafer for inspection.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a wafer inspection apparatus (semiconductor thin plate inspection apparatus for integrated circuits), and reference numeral 2 denotes a wafer (semiconductor thin plate for integrated circuits). Wafer 2
Is composed of a semiconductor material such as single-crystal silicon, and its surface (the surface of a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit) 3 has an X direction (one direction) and a Y direction (a direction orthogonal) on one plane. In a grid-like integrated circuit (tested circuit)
4 are arranged in 64 circuits.

The wafer inspection apparatus 1 performs a characteristic inspection of the integrated circuit 4, and as shown in FIG. 2, an XY table (holding unit) 5 that holds the wafer 2 and is movable in the XY directions. The XY table 5 includes a frame 6 which is arranged to face the wafer 2 held by the XY table 5 and is movable in the Z direction, and probe cards 8A to 8D fixed to a surface 7 of the frame 6 facing the wafer 2. The frame 6 is made of a material having substantially the same linear expansion coefficient as the wafer 2.

As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of external connection terminals (terminals to be inspected) 9 are formed on the integrated circuit 4, and the probe cards 8A. A conductive stylus 10 that is precisely positioned and a printed wiring (not shown) connected to the stylus 10
Are provided respectively.

A test board 12 having a test circuit (not shown) for performing a characteristic test of the integrated circuit 4 is provided on the back surface 11 side of the frame 6. They are electrically connected by a wiring 14 passing through a through hole 13 formed in the frame 6.

On the other hand, the probe cards 8A... 8D are 4 × 4 16 × 4 × 4 so that when the plurality of integrated circuits 4 of the wafer 2 are superimposed on the surface 3 in the vertical direction.
A1 ... A16, B1 ... B16, C1 ... C1
6, inspection areas 15A to 15 arranged in D1 to D16
D is set to be rectangular, and each inspection area 15A is set.
.. Are arranged at positions facing 15D.

The operation of the wafer inspection apparatus and the inspection method having the above configuration will be described below. First, by moving the XY table 5, as shown in FIG. 1, the integrated circuits A1... D located at the upper left end of each of the inspection areas 15A.
1 are arranged so as to face the probe cards 8A to 8D.

Then, the frame 6 is moved in the Z direction to approach the wafer 2. Accordingly, the stylus 10 of each of the probe cards 8A to 8D descends in correspondence with each of the external connection terminals 9 of the integrated circuits A1 to D1, and after the contact, the frame 6 stops moving in the Z direction.

At this time, the wafer inspection apparatus 1 is often heated or cooled, and even if the wafer 2 expands or contracts, the frame 6 to which the probe cards 8A to 8D are fixed expands by the same amount as the wafer 2. Alternatively, since the probe is contracted, the relative position between the stylus 10 and the external connection terminal 9 is maintained.

The test circuit of the test auxiliary board 12 is connected to the external connection terminals 9 via the wiring 14, the printed wiring, and the stylus 10, and various types of integrated circuits A1 to D1 formed on the wafer 2 Characteristic inspection can be performed. After the inspection is completed, the frame 6 moves up again and moves in a direction away from the wafer 2, and one inspection process is completed.

Subsequently, the XY table 5 is relatively moved along the surface 3 of the wafer 2 in the −X direction (the left side in FIG. 1) by one pitch of the arrangement of the integrated circuits 4, and each inspection area is The integrated circuits A2... D2 of 15A... 15D are arranged so as to face the probe cards 8A.

Thus, the probe cards 8A... 8D
Moves relative to the wafer 2 while maintaining the same positional relationship. Then, like the integrated circuits A1 to D1, the frame 6 moves in the Z direction,
The stylus 10 is an integrated circuit A2 in each of the inspection areas 15A to 15D.
... Various characteristics can be inspected by contacting the external connection terminal 9 of D2. Thereafter, the same operation as described above is sequentially repeated up to the integrated circuits A16 to D16, so that the wafer 2
All of the upper integrated circuits 4 can be inspected.

According to the wafer inspection apparatus and the inspection method of the present embodiment, the integrated circuit 4 of the wafer 2 is divided into four areas to be inspected 15A to 15D, and each of the inspected areas 15A to 15D is set. Since the probe cards 8A... 8D are arranged at positions opposite to the above, the inspection can be completed in 16 steps even for the wafer 2 on which 64 circuits are formed, and the productivity per floor unit area can be improved. Can contribute.

Also, the distance the XY table 5 moves is
Since the X-direction and the Y-direction are each halved, the time required for the inspection is greatly reduced, and it is not necessary to increase the size of the wafer inspection apparatus 1 or to increase the relative accuracy. Price can be realized. Further, the probe cards 8A...
Since the positioning is adjusted and fixed, the work is easy and the positioning accuracy is improved.

Since the wafer 2 and the frame 6 have substantially the same linear expansion coefficient, even when their temperature rises or falls, they have the same amount of expansion and contraction. External connection terminal 9 and stylus 1
The positional relationship with 0 can be maintained.

In the above embodiment, each of the inspection areas 15A... 15D is composed of 4 × 4 16 circuits.
A configuration including 16 circuits in two directions may be used. In this case, four probe cards 8A to 8D may be arranged in the Y direction.

Further, the configuration has four inspection areas. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, n inspection areas are set, and n probe cards are arranged at positions corresponding thereto. Thereby, the productivity can be improved n times. On the other hand, since the probe cards 8A... 8D are fixed to the frame 6, by replacing the frame 6, it is possible to easily cope with wafers of various diameters. Equipment, even 12 inch wafers can be targeted.

[0031]

As described above, according to the apparatus for inspecting a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit according to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of circuits to be inspected of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit are placed on the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit by a plurality of inspections. The configuration is such that a section is set in the inspection area and the probe card is arranged at a position facing each inspection area. As a result, an excellent effect is achieved in that the inspection is completed in a small number of steps, the productivity is improved, and miniaturization, cost reduction and high accuracy can be realized.

According to the semiconductor thin plate inspection device for an integrated circuit of the second aspect, the frame and the semiconductor thin plate for the integrated circuit have substantially the same linear expansion coefficient. This provides an excellent effect that the positional relationship between the terminal to be inspected and the stylus can be maintained with high accuracy even when they are thermally expanded or contracted.

According to the method for inspecting a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit according to the third aspect of the present invention, the probe card holds the same positional relationship on one plane and relatively moves along the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. The configuration is such that the characteristic inspection of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit is performed by being moved. As a result, an excellent effect is achieved in that the inspection is completed in a small number of steps, the productivity is improved, and miniaturization, cost reduction and high accuracy can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and is a plan view in which a probe card is arranged to face each of integrated circuits partitioned into four inspection areas.

FIG. 2 is a front view of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a detailed view of a main part in FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wafer inspection device (Integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate inspection device) 2 Wafer (Integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate) 3 Surface (Integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate surface) 4, A1 ... A16, B1 ... B16, C1 ... C16, D1
... D16 integrated circuit (circuit to be inspected) 5 XY table (holding unit) 6 frame 8, 8A ... 8D probe card 9 terminal for external connection (terminal to be inspected) 10 probe 15A ... 15D area to be inspected

Claims (3)

[Claims] An object of the present invention is to provide an integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate in which a circuit to be inspected having a terminal to be inspected is arranged in a grid on one plane in one direction and a direction orthogonal to the one direction. An inspection device for inspecting characteristics of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit by contacting a stylus of a probe card to the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit; and a holding unit for holding the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit; A frame disposed opposite to the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate; and a plurality of the probe cards fixed to the frame. The plurality of probe cards are configured to control a plurality of circuits to be inspected of the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate. A plurality of regions to be inspected defined on the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit and arranged at positions opposed to the respective regions to be inspected. Thin inspection apparatus. 2. The apparatus for inspecting an integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate according to claim 1, wherein the frame has a linear expansion coefficient substantially equal to a linear expansion coefficient of the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate. Inspection equipment for integrated circuits. 3. The integrated circuit device according to claim 1, wherein the circuit to be inspected having the terminal to be inspected is a semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit arranged in a grid on one plane in one direction and a direction orthogonal to the one direction. A method for inspecting characteristics of an integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate by bringing a probe of a probe card into contact with a semiconductor card, wherein a plurality of inspected circuits of the integrated circuit semiconductor thin plate are integrated into the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. A plurality of regions to be inspected are set on the surface, and a plurality of probe cards are arranged so as to face the respective regions to be inspected of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit. The characteristic inspection is performed by relatively moving along the surface of the semiconductor thin plate for an integrated circuit while maintaining the positional relationship, thereby performing the characteristic inspection. Method.