KR20170064750A

KR20170064750A - Probe station

Info

Publication number: KR20170064750A
Application number: KR1020150170604A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 김우열
Original assignee: 세메스 주식회사
Priority date: 2015-12-02
Filing date: 2015-12-02
Publication date: 2017-06-12

Abstract

A probe station is disclosed that performs electrical inspection of semiconductor devices formed on a wafer. The probe station includes a probe card having a plurality of probes for contacting the semiconductor elements to apply an inspection signal, a chuck for supporting the wafer, and a plurality of level compensating members disposed under the chuck to support the chuck. The level compensating members have an elastic force and serve as a buffer against the pressure applied by the probes to the chuck to contact the semiconductor elements. Accordingly, the probe station can correct the level of the chuck in response to the pressure applied by the probes, so that the probes of the probe card can be brought into contact with the wafer at a uniform contact depth, and the electrical inspection of the wafer can be performed stably .

Description

Probe station < RTI ID = 0.0 >

Embodiments of the invention relate to a probe station. And more particularly, to a probe station for performing electrical inspection of a wafer on which semiconductor elements are formed using a probe card.

Generally, semiconductor devices, such as integrated circuit devices, can be formed by repeatedly performing a series of semiconductor processes on a semiconductor wafer. For example, a deposition process for forming a thin film on a wafer, an etching process for forming the thin film into patterns having electrical characteristics, an ion implantation process or diffusion process for implanting or diffusing impurities into the patterns, The semiconductor circuit elements can be formed on the wafer by repeatedly performing a cleaning and rinsing process to remove impurities from the wafer.

An inspection process for inspecting the electrical characteristics of the semiconductor devices after forming the semiconductor devices through such a series of processes can be performed. The inspection process may be performed by a probe station including a probe card having a plurality of probes and a tester connected to the probe card to provide an electrical signal.

For the inspection process, a probe card may be mounted on the upper part of the inspection chamber, and a chuck for supporting the wafer may be disposed below the probe card. The chuck can be configured to be movable vertically and horizontally so that the pads on the wafer are in contact with the probes of the probe card.

Since the inspection process must be performed in a state where the probes of the probe card and the pads on the wafer are in uniform contact with each other, a step of aligning the probe card and the wafer before contacting the probes and the pads is necessary.

To align the probe card with the wafer, the chuck moves and rotates in the vertical and horizontal directions and leveling with respect to the probe card, and the holder of the probe card also levels the probe card with respect to the wafer.

However, even if the probes are brought into contact with the pads after aligning the probe card and the wafer, the Z axis, which is the vertical axis of the chuck, is pushed by the pressure that the probes press against the pads, so that the level of the wafer relative to the probe card can be changed. As a result, there arises a problem that the contact depths vary depending on the contact positions of the probes and the pads.

Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2004-0005089 (January 16, 2004)

Embodiments of the present invention provide a probe station capable of correcting the level of the chuck corresponding to the pressure applied to the chuck supporting the wafer from the probes of the probe card.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a probe station including a plurality of probes for contacting an inspection semiconductor device formed on a wafer and applying an inspection signal, A chuck disposed below the probe card and supporting the wafer; and a buffer disposed under the chuck for supporting the chuck and having an elastic force, wherein the probes apply pressure to the chuck to contact the semiconductor elements, And a plurality of level correction members for correcting the level of the chuck.

According to the embodiments of the present invention, the level compensating members may be disposed apart from each other to support the end portion of the chuck.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the probe station may further include an engaging plate coupled to a lower portion of the chuck and having a plurality of insertion grooves into which the level compensating members are inserted, and fixing the position of the level compensating members .

According to embodiments of the present invention, the probe station may further include a rotation unit coupled to a lower portion of the chuck, having a plurality of insertion grooves into which the level compensating members are inserted, and rotating the chuck.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the level compensating member may be a spring.

According to the embodiments of the present invention as described above, since the probe station includes the level compensating members that serve as a buffer against the pressure applied to the chuck from the probes of the probe card, the Z axis of the chuck is pushed And to correct the level of the chuck in response to the pressure the probes press. As a result, the probe station can make the probes of the probe card come into contact with the wafer at a uniform contact depth, so that the electrical inspection of the wafer can be performed stably and the inspection reliability can be improved.

1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a probe station according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 2 is a side view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck, the level compensating members and the engaging plate shown in Fig. 1. Fig.
FIG. 3 is a plan view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck and level correction members shown in FIG. 2. FIG.
4 is a plan view for explaining the coupling relationship of the level correction members and the coupling plate shown in FIG.
5 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a probe station according to another embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a side view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck, the level correction members and the rotation unit shown in Fig.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described below, but may be embodied in various other forms. The following examples are provided so that those skilled in the art can fully understand the scope of the present invention, rather than being provided so as to enable the present invention to be fully completed.

In the embodiments of the present invention, when one element is described as being placed on or connected to another element, the element may be disposed or connected directly to the other element, . Alternatively, if one element is described as being placed directly on another element or connected, there can be no other element between them. The terms first, second, third, etc. may be used to describe various items such as various elements, compositions, regions, layers and / or portions, but the items are not limited by these terms .

The terminology used in the embodiments of the present invention is used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention. Furthermore, all terms including technical and scientific terms have the same meaning as will be understood by those skilled in the art having ordinary skill in the art, unless otherwise specified. These terms, such as those defined in conventional dictionaries, shall be construed to have meanings consistent with their meanings in the context of the related art and the description of the present invention, and are to be interpreted as being ideally or externally grossly intuitive It will not be interpreted.

Embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to schematic illustrations of ideal embodiments of the present invention. Thus, changes from the shapes of the illustrations, e.g., changes in manufacturing methods and / or tolerances, are those that can be reasonably expected. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the specific shapes of the regions described in the drawings, but include deviations in the shapes, and the elements described in the drawings are entirely schematic and their shapes Is not intended to describe the exact shape of the elements and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view for explaining a probe station according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck, the level compensating members and the engaging plate shown in FIG.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a probe station 100A according to an embodiment of the present invention performs an electrical characteristic test on a wafer 10 on which semiconductor elements are formed, using a probe card 20. FIG. The probe station 100A may include a test chamber 110, a chuck 120, and a plurality of level compensating members 130.

Specifically, the inspection chamber 110 provides a process space for performing an electrical inspection on the wafer 10, and the chuck 120 and the probe card 20 are disposed in the inspection chamber 110 .

The chuck 120 is disposed under the probe card 20 and has a generally columnar shape to support the wafer 10. The level compensating members 130 are disposed below the chuck 120.

FIG. 3 is a plan view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck and level correction members shown in FIG. 2. FIG.

1 to 3, the level compensating members 130 may be disposed apart from each other and support the ends of the chuck 120 as shown in FIG. The level compensating members 130 may have an elastic force, and in an example of the present invention, the level compensating member 130 may be a spring. Non-metallic springs made of a non-metallic material such as rubber or synthetic resin, metal springs made of a metal material, or fluid springs using air or oil may be used as the spring that can be used as the level compensating member 130.

Particularly, the level compensating members 130 serve as a buffer against the pressure applied to the chuck 120 from the probes 22 of the probe card 20 to correct the level of the chuck 120 .

That is, the probe station 100A aligns the probe card 20 and the wafer 10 so that the probes of the probe card 20 uniformly contact the inspection pads formed on the wafer 10. [ At this time, the chuck 120 moves in the vertical and horizontal directions and rotates to align the wafer 10.

When the alignment between the wafer 10 and the probe card 20 is completed, the probes of the probe card 20 contact the inspection pads on the wafer 10 to apply an inspection signal. Here, the probe station 100A may be connected to a tester 30 for checking electrical characteristics of the wafer 10. The tester 30 applies the inspection signal to the semiconductor devices through the probe card 20 and inspects the electrical characteristics of the wafer 10 through signals output from the semiconductor devices.

The probes 22 of the probe card 20 may contact the wafer 10 at a predetermined contact depth to apply the test signal to the test pads. The Z-axis, which is the axis of the chuck 120 in the vertical direction, can be pushed by the pressure of the probes 22 pressing the wafer 10 in the course of the probes 22 contacting the test pads So that the level of the chuck 120 is changed so that the contact depth of the probes 22 can be changed according to the contact position.

In order to prevent this, the level compensating members 130 serve as a buffer against the pressure applied to the chuck 120 from the probes 22, The Z axis of the chuck 120 can be prevented from being pushed and the level of the chuck 120 can be corrected corresponding to the pressure. The probes 22 of the probe card 20 can be brought into contact with the wafer 10 with a uniform contact depth so that the probe station 100A can reliably perform electrical inspection of the wafer 10. [ It is possible to improve the inspection reliability.

Meanwhile, the probe station 100A according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a coupling plate 140. The coupling plate 140 may be coupled to a lower portion of the chuck 130 to fix the position of the level compensating members 130.

4 is a plan view for explaining the coupling relationship of the level correction members and the coupling plate shown in FIG.

1, 2 and 4, the engaging plate 140 may have a substantially circular plate shape as shown in FIG. The coupling plate 140 may have a plurality of insertion grooves 142 into which the level members 130 may be inserted and the insertion grooves 142 may be formed at the end of the coupling plate 140 . The level compensating member 130 may be inserted into the insertion groove 142 to support the end of the chuck 120.

The probe station 100A may further include a rotation unit 150, a vertical driving unit 160, a chuck stage 170, and a horizontal driving unit 180 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The rotating unit 150A is disposed below the engaging plate 140 and engages with the chuck 120 to rotate the chuck 120. [ The vertical driving unit 160 may be disposed under the rotating unit 150A and the vertical driving unit 160 may be disposed on the upper surface of the chucking stage 170. [ The chuck stage 170 may be disposed on the horizontal driving unit 180. Here, the arrangement relationship between the vertical driving unit 160 and the horizontal driving unit 180 may be variously changed, so that the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.

The chuck 120 may be moved in the vertical direction by the vertical driving unit 160 and horizontally by the horizontal driving unit 180. The rotation unit 150A, the vertical driving unit 160 and the horizontal driving unit 180 are arranged to detect the positions of the pads on the wafer 10 with respect to the probes 22 and the vertical and horizontal positions of the chuck 120 So that the probe card 20 and the wafer 10 can be aligned.

The probe station 100A according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a lower alignment camera 192 disposed on one side of the chuck 120 and an upper alignment camera 194 disposed on one side of the probe card 20 ).

The lower alignment camera 192 is disposed on the chuck stage 170 and is movable with the chuck 120 to obtain an image of the probes 22 of the probe card 20. The lower alignment camera 194 may be disposed above the chuck 120 to obtain an image of the patterns on the wafer 10. Although not shown in detail in the drawing, the upper alignment camera 194 can be moved horizontally by a driving unit having a bridge shape. In particular, the lower and upper alignment cameras 192, 194 may be used for alignment between the wafer 10 and the probe card 20.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining a probe station according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a side view for explaining the arrangement relationship of the chuck, the level correcting members and the rotation unit shown in FIG.

5 and 6, a probe station 100B according to another embodiment of the present invention is similar to the probe station 100A shown in FIG. 1 except for the rotation unit 150B and the coupling plate 140 The same components as those of the probe station 100A of FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Unlike the probe station 100A of FIG. 1, the probe station 100B does not include the coupling plate 140, and the position of the level compensating members 130 for correcting the level of the chuck 120 is changed And is fixed by the unit 150B.

That is, the rotation unit 150B may be coupled to the lower portion of the chuck 120, and may have a plurality of insertion grooves 152 for inserting the level compensating members 130. The insertion grooves 152 may be formed at the side ends of the rotation unit 150B and the pendent level correcting members 130 may be inserted into the insertion grooves 152 to fix the end of the chuck 120 Can support.

The probe station 100B according to another embodiment of the present invention may have insertion grooves 152 for inserting the level correction members 130 into the rotation unit 150B, It is not necessary to provide a separate member for fixing the position of the support member. Therefore, the probe station 100B can improve the assemblability compared to the probe station 100A shown in FIG.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. It will be understood.

10: wafer 20: probe card
100A, 100B: probe station 110: inspection chamber
120: chuck 130: level compensating member
140: coupling plate 150A. 150B:
142, 152: insertion groove 160: vertical driving part
170: Chuck stage 180: Horizontal driving part
192, 194: Alignment camera

Claims

A probe card having a plurality of probes contacting the semiconductor elements formed on the wafer and applying an inspection signal, the probe card for electrical inspection of the wafer;
A chuck disposed below the probe card and supporting the wafer; And
A plurality of level compensating members disposed at a lower portion of the chuck for supporting the chuck and having an elastic force and serving as a buffer against the pressure applied to the chucks by the probes to contact the semiconductor elements, The probe station comprising:

The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the level compensating members are disposed so as to be spaced apart from each other to support an end portion of the chuck.

3. The method of claim 2,
Further comprising an engaging plate coupled to a lower portion of the chuck and having a plurality of insertion grooves into which the level compensating members are inserted and fixing a position of the level compensating members.

3. The method of claim 2,
Further comprising a rotating unit coupled to a lower portion of the chuck and having a plurality of insertion grooves into which the level compensating members are inserted and rotating the chuck.

The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the level compensating member is a spring.