Probe card with balanced lateral force
US7538567B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 12, 2006 |
| Grant date | May 26, 2009 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 5, 2027 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01R1/07342
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A novel method and structure for counter-balancing a lateral force exerted by a probe card onto a device under test (“DUT”) is disclosed. Many DUTs (particularly memory devices) are tested in parallel (i.e., many die at a time) and have unequal numbers of contact pads on top vs. bottom and/or right vs. left sides of the die. The probe card used to test the DUT would necessarily have an uneven distribution of probes that match the contact pads and, as a consequence, may exert a net lateral force on the DUT. By manipulating the individual characteristics of the individual probes, a probe card may be constructed that zeroes the lateral force. Characteristics such as the direction and stiffness of the individual probes can be varied to zero the net lateral force.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.