WO2023113214A1

WO2023113214A1 - Method for manufacturing conductive member for rubber socket

Info

Publication number: WO2023113214A1
Application number: PCT/KR2022/016636
Authority: WO
Inventors: 문성주
Original assignee: 주식회사 티에프이
Priority date: 2021-12-13
Filing date: 2022-10-28
Publication date: 2023-06-22
Also published as: KR20230088965A

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket, comprising the steps of: preparing a first substrate having a first groove; filling the first groove with a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material; sintering the materials at a temperature that is higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material so that the diamagnetic material is agglomerated while surrounding the ferromagnetic material in the first groove so as to form spherical conductive particles; preparing a second substrate having a second groove that is wider than the first groove; filling the second groove with a plurality of conductive particles; and sintering the conductive particles at a temperature that is higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material so that the diamagnetic material is melted in the plurality of conductive particles and bonded to each other, thereby forming a conductive member in which the plurality of conductive particles are connected to each other.

Description

Manufacturing method of conductive member for rubber socket

The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket used in a semiconductor device test.

In general, a semiconductor device undergoes a manufacturing process and then undergoes an inspection to determine whether electrical performance is defective. The quality test of a semiconductor device is performed in a state in which a test socket for energizing the semiconductor device is disposed between the semiconductor device and the inspection circuit board. In addition to the final pass/fail test of semiconductor devices, the test socket is also used in a burn-in test process during the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices.

As semiconductor device integration technology develops and miniaturization trends, the size and pitch of terminals of semiconductor devices, that is, leads, are also miniaturized, so a method of forming fine intervals between conductive patterns of test sockets is required. Therefore, there is a limit to manufacturing a test socket for testing an integrated semiconductor device with a conventional pogo-pin type test socket.

In order to meet the integration of semiconductor devices, after forming a perforated pattern in the height direction on a body made of elastic silicone rubber material, filling the perforated pattern with a mixture of conductive particles and adhesive components to form a current rod PCR (Pressurized Conductive Rubber) sockets, simply rubber sockets, are widely used.

In the rubber socket, many conductive particles are used, each of which is usually formed of small particles. Since resistance increases at contact points between conductive particles along a conductive path formed by a plurality of conductive particles, electrical performance of the current rod deteriorates.

One object of the present invention, when used in an energizing rod, it is possible to manufacture a conductive member that improves the electrical performance of an energizing rod by forming a conductive path while reducing resistance generated in the conductive path, for a rubber socket It is to provide a method for manufacturing a conductive member.

A method for manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket according to an aspect of the present invention for realizing the above object includes preparing a first substrate having a first groove; filling the first groove with a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material; sintering at a temperature higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material so that the diamagnetic material is agglomerated while surrounding the ferromagnetic material in the first groove to form spherical conductive particles; preparing a second substrate having a second groove wider than the first groove; filling the second groove with a plurality of conductive particles; and sintering the diamagnetic material at a temperature higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material so that the diamagnetic material is melted and bonded to each other in the plurality of conductive particles, thereby forming a conductive member in which the plurality of conductive particles are connected to each other.

Here, the second groove may have a rectangular shape such that the plurality of conductive particles are arranged in a line.

Here, the diamagnetic material may include at least one of silver, copper, gold, and platinum, and the ferromagnetic material may include at least one of cobalt and iron.

Here, at least one of preparing a first substrate having the first groove and preparing a second substrate having a second groove wider than the first groove, the first substrate or the second substrate. Forming the first groove or the second groove by etching the substrate may be included.

Here, before the step of filling the first groove with a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material, the step of performing an oxide film coating on the first groove may be further included.

Here, before the step of filling the second groove with a plurality of conductive particles, the step of performing an oxide film coating on the second groove may be further included.

Here, the oxide film coating may include forming a silicon dioxide layer.

Here, a step of additionally plating the conductive member with the diamagnetic material may be further provided.

According to the method for manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket according to the present invention configured as described above, conductive particles are formed by primary sintering of a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material, and then secondary sintering of the plurality of conductive particles is performed so that the plurality of conductive particles are interconnected. As a plurality of conductive particles are bonded together, a conductive member connected to each other can be formed, and the electrical performance of the conducting rod can be improved by reducing the conduction resistance of the conducting rod along the connecting direction through the conducting member.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state of use of a rubber socket 100 for testing a semiconductor device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual view showing a main portion A of the rubber socket 100 of FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a conceptual view showing a conductive member according to a modified example of the conductive member 151 of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a specific structure of the first conductive particles 153 of FIG. 2 .

5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a step S3 of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram for explaining another step S5 of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram for explaining another step S9 of FIG. 5 .

9 is a conceptual diagram showing an oxide film coating step added in FIG. 5 .

10 is a conceptual diagram showing a plated conductive member 151 .

Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification, the same or similar reference numerals are assigned to the same or similar components even in different embodiments, and the description is replaced with the first description.

Referring to this figure, the rubber socket 100 is positioned between the semiconductor element S and the test board B. Specifically, the rubber socket 100 is for electrically connecting the terminal E of the semiconductor element S and the pad P of the test board B. The rubber socket 100 also serves to receive and buffer the pressing force when the semiconductor element S is pressed toward the test board B by a pusher or the like.

Such a rubber socket 100 may include a main body 110 and an energizing rod 150 .

The main body 110 may have a base 111 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped block shape. The base 111 may be made of an insulating material, for example silicon rubber. As a result, the base 111 has insulating properties and cushioning properties.

A through hole 115 is formed through the base 111 along the height direction H. A plurality of through holes 115 may be formed, and may be arranged to have a predetermined interval therebetween.

The conducting rod 150 is disposed in a form inserted into the through hole 115 to form an electrical passage. Through the conducting rod 150, the terminal E of the semiconductor element S is electrically connected to the pad P of the test board B. Alternatively, the conducting rods 150 may be arranged along the height direction in the main body 110 by magnetic forming without forming the through hole 115 .

Hereinafter, a specific configuration of the energizing rod 150 will be described with reference to FIG. 2 .

Referring to this figure, as described above, a through hole 115 is formed in the base 111 of the main body 110, and an energizing rod 150 is disposed in the through hole 115.

In detail, the conducting rod 150 forms a form in which a plurality of conductive members 151 are integrally coupled by a coupling material 161 . The conductive rod 150 is formed by filling the through hole 115 with a mixture of the conductive member 151 and the binding material 161 . The plurality of conductive members 151 are in contact with each other along the height direction H to form an electrical path along the height direction H.

The conductive member 151 is not a single particle, but a plurality of particles combined to form one member. Specifically, the conductive member 151 may be a combination of first conductive particles 153 and second conductive particles 155.

The first conductive particle 153 and the second conductive particle 155 may have a substantially spherical shape. Although they are connected to each other to form the conductive member 151, in the conductive member 151 they generally retain their respective shapes. By such a connection, the total length (L) of the conductive member 151 corresponds to the sum of the individual lengths (L ₁ ) of the first conductive particles 153 and the individual lengths (L ₂ ) of the second conductive particles 155 can be defined as

A direction in which the first conductive particles 153 and the second conductive particles 155 are connected is a direction in which they are arranged in a line. This connection direction may be substantially the same as the height direction (H). In other words, the conductive members 151 are arranged in an erect shape along the height direction H. Such an arrangement is made by a magnetoforming process for the energizing rod 150.

According to this configuration, in the conductive path along the height direction H, the resistance between the conductive members 151 is reduced compared to the conventional one. This is because contact resistance does not occur for each individual particle such as the first conductive particle 153 and the second conductive particle 155 . Since the first conductive particles 153 and the second conductive particles 155 are combined to form a single member called the conductive member 151, contact resistance does not occur therefrom. In contrast, contact resistance is generated only at the contact portion C between the conductive members 151 .

As a result, contact resistance previously occurring between individual particles is reduced by almost half due to the conductive member 151 connecting the first conductive particles 153 and the second conductive particles 155 as a single member. Accordingly, resistance generated along the conductive path is reduced, and electrical performance of the energizing rod 150 may be improved.

Other forms of the conductive member 151 will be described with reference to FIG. 3 . FIG. 3 is a conceptual view showing a conductive member according to a modified example of the conductive member 151 of FIG. 2 .

Referring to this figure, the conductive members 151' and 151" are substantially the same as the previous conductive member 151, but there is a difference in that the third conductive particles 157 and the fourth conductive particles 159 are additionally connected. .

The third conductive particle 157 and the fourth conductive particle 159 may also have the same spherical shape as the first conductive particle 153 or the second conductive particle 155 . These may also be connected to the second conductive particles 155 or the third conductive particles 157 along the connection direction while maintaining their respective shapes.

According to this configuration, the contact resistance of the conductive members 151' and 151" along the height direction H is further reduced, so that the electrical performance of the energizing rod 150 (see FIG. 2) can be further improved.

In the above, the structure of individual particles constituting the conductive member will be described with reference to FIG. 4 . FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining a specific structure of the first conductive particles 153 of FIG. 2 .

Referring to this figure, the first conductive particle 153 may be a composite of several materials. Specifically, the first conductive particle 153 may have a structure of a base 153a and a core 153b included therein.

The base 153a may have a spherical shape as a whole. It may be formed of a diamagnetic material such as at least one of silver, copper, gold, and platinum. A plating layer 153c may be formed on an outer surface of the base 153a. The plating layer 153c may also be formed of a diamagnetic material. For example, when the base 153a is made of silver, the plating layer 153c may be made of gold.

The core 153b is disposed within the base 153a and may be formed of a ferromagnetic material. As the ferromagnetic material, for example, at least one of cobalt and iron may be used. The ferromagnetic material can enhance the stability of electrical contact between the conductive members (151, see FIG. 2) by improving the gathering ability between the conductive members 151 in the magnetic forming process.

The other shape 153' of the first conductive particle 153 is also substantially the same as the first conductive particle 153, but there is a difference in that the core 153b' is enlarged. This may further enhance the meeting between the conductive members 151 by the core 153b'.

In the above, the first conductive particle 153 has been described as an example, but other particles such as the second conductive particle 155 may have the same configuration.

Now, a method of manufacturing the conductive member 151 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 10 .

5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a step S3 of FIG. 5, and FIG. It is a conceptual diagram for explaining another step (S5), and FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram for explaining another step (S9) of FIG.

Referring to these drawings, first, a first substrate having a first groove should be prepared (S1). Here, the first substrate may be a semiconductor wafer, and the first groove may be formed in the first substrate through an etching process.

Next, the first groove should be filled with a material for forming the conductive particles (153 and 155, see FIG. 2) (S3). The diamagnetic material 153am for making the base 153a described above with reference to FIG. 4 and the ferromagnetic material 153bm for making the core 153b may be filled.

Now, the

conductive particles

153 and 155 are molded through primary sintering (S5). This is achieved by sintering at a temperature slightly higher than the melting temperature of the diamagnetic material 153am having a relatively low melting point among the diamagnetic material 153am and the ferromagnetic material 153bm. Specifically, the diamagnetic material 153am melted in the first groove is formed into spherical

conductive particles

153 and 155 while being aggregated while surrounding the ferromagnetic material 153bm.

In a state in which the

conductive particles

153 and 155 are secured, a second substrate having a second groove should be prepared (S7). The second groove has a larger size than the first groove. Like the first groove, the second groove may also be formed on the semiconductor substrate through an etching process. The second substrate may be separate from the first substrate, or the first substrate may be used as the second substrate. In the latter case, both the first groove and the second groove must be formed in the first substrate.

The prepared second groove should be filled with conductive particles 153 and 155 (S9). If it is desired to mold the conductive member 151 in which the two

conductive particles

153 and 155 are connected, the two

conductive particles

153 and 155 may be inserted into the second groove. In order to form the conductive member 151 having three particles, the second groove must be filled with three

conductive particles

153 and 155, of course. The second groove has a corresponding size and may have a rectangular shape for one-line arrangement of the

conductive particles

153 and 155 .

Finally, through secondary sintering, a plurality of

conductive particles

153 and 155 are connected (S11). Similar to the first sintering, as the sintering is performed at a temperature slightly higher than the melting temperature of the diamagnetic material 153am, the diamagnetic material 153am of each of the

conductive particles

153 and 155 is melted and bonded to each other. Due to this, the conductive member 151 is completed.

Steps that may be added in the above manufacturing process will be described with reference to FIG. 9 . 9 is a conceptual diagram showing an oxide film coating step added in FIG. 5 .

Referring to this figure, before steps S3 and S9, a step of coating the first groove or the second groove with an oxide film may be added.

The oxide film coating may be to form a silicon dioxide layer in the first groove or the second groove. The oxide film has a higher melting temperature than the diamagnetic material 153am with which it comes into contact.

By adding this process, the

conductive particles

153 and 155 molded in the first groove do not adhere to the substrate by the oxide film coating layer, and thus can be easily separated from the first groove. This prevents the shape of the

conductive particles

153 and 155 from being damaged or the shape of the first groove from being damaged, so that the first substrate can be reused.

The same may be applied to the conductive member 151 or the second substrate formed in the second groove.

Further processing of the previously made conductive member 151 will be described with reference to FIG. 10 . 10 is a conceptual diagram showing a plated conductive member 151 .

Referring to this figure, the previously formed conductive member 151 is formed by bonding diamagnetic materials 153am to each other, and additional plating may be performed on this.

As a result, the plating layer 153c may be formed on the entire bases 153a of the first conductive particles 153 and the second conductive particles 155 . Furthermore, an additional plating layer 153d may be first formed on the bases 153a. These plating layers 153c and 153d have a meaning of enhancing conductive performance.

The manufacturing method of the conductive member for the rubber socket as described above is not limited to the configuration and operation method of the embodiments described above. The above embodiments may be configured so that various modifications can be made by selectively combining all or part of each embodiment.

The present invention has industrial applicability in the field of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket.

Claims

preparing a first substrate having a first groove;

filling the first groove with a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material;

sintering at a temperature higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material so that the diamagnetic material is agglomerated while surrounding the ferromagnetic material in the first groove to form spherical conductive particles;

preparing a second substrate having a second groove wider than the first groove;

filling the second groove with a plurality of conductive particles; and

Sintering at a temperature higher than the melting point of the diamagnetic material to form a conductive member in which the plurality of conductive particles are connected to each other as the diamagnetic material is melted and bonded to each other in the plurality of conductive particles. member manufacturing method.
According to claim 1,

The second groove,

A method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket having a rectangular shape so that the plurality of conductive particles are arranged in a line.
According to claim 1,

The diamagnetic material,

at least one of silver, copper, gold, and platinum;

The ferromagnetic material,

A method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket comprising at least one of cobalt and iron.
According to claim 1,

At least one of preparing a first substrate having the first groove and preparing a second substrate having a second groove wider than the first groove,

Forming the first groove or the second groove by etching the first substrate or the second substrate, the method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket.
According to claim 1,

Before filling the first groove with a ferromagnetic material and a diamagnetic material,

Further comprising the step of performing an oxide film coating on the first groove, the method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket.
According to claim 1,

Before the step of filling the second groove with a plurality of conductive particles,

Further comprising the step of performing an oxide film coating on the second groove, the method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket.
According to claim 5,

The oxide film coating,

A method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket, comprising forming a silicon dioxide layer.
According to claim 1,

Further comprising the step of additionally plating the conductive member with the diamagnetic material, the method of manufacturing a conductive member for a rubber socket.