|Publication number||US7508227 B2|
|Application number||US 11/866,024|
|Publication date||Mar 24, 2009|
|Filing date||Oct 2, 2007|
|Priority date||Jul 10, 2000|
|Also published as||US6603323, US6784677, US7276922, US7960990, US20030169061, US20050001638, US20080024143, US20090179659, US20100264947, WO2002005606A2, WO2002005606A3|
|Publication number||11866024, 866024, US 7508227 B2, US 7508227B2, US-B2-7508227, US7508227 B2, US7508227B2|
|Inventors||Charles A. Miller, John Matthew Long|
|Original Assignee||Formfactor, Inc.|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (62), Referenced by (2), Classifications (19), Legal Events (2)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
This application is a DIV of Ser. No. 10/832,700, filed Apr. 27, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,276,922, which is a CON of Ser. No. 10/406,669 filed Apr. 2, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,784,677, which is a DIV of Ser. No. 09/613,531, filed Jul. 10, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,603,323.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to an interconnect structure for providing signal paths between test equipment and contact pads on a semiconductor wafer, and in particular to a wafer interconnect structure employing a closed-grid bus to distribute signals to several integrated circuit devices under test.
2. Description of Related Art
In many applications microstrip or stripline traces convey a logic signal from a single source to many nodes on a printed circuit board (PCB). For example traces on a motherboard commonly distribute data, address and control lines of computer buses to sockets holding daughterboards, or traces on a PCB may distribute a clock signal to several synchronously operating integrated circuits (ICs) mounted on the PCB.
A typical integrated circuit (IC) tester includes a test head structure containing a set of tester channels. Each tester channel may either transmit a test signal to an IC input/output (I/O) terminal or monitor a IC output signal appearing at an IC I/O terminal to determine whether the IC is behaving as expected in response to its input signals. When ICs are tested while still in the form of die on a semiconductor wafer, a “prober” typically holds a wafer adjacent to the test head and provides a set of probes contacting I/O pads of one or more ICs. An interconnect structure is provided to link the tester channels to the probes. A typical interconnect structure includes a circuit board having upper and lower surfaces containing contact pads. A separate pogo pin extending from each tester channel contacts a separate one of the upper surface contact pads. An “interposer” mounted between the circuit board and the prober includes spring contacts linking the contact pads on the lower surface of the circuit board to the probes. Traces on various layers of the circuit board, and vias interconnecting those traces provide appropriate signal paths between the upper and lower contact pads.
Normally the interconnect structure links each tester channel to only a single I/O pad of a single IC. However in some cases, for example when a tester channel is supplying power to ICs under test, the interconnect structure may connect a single channel to more than power supply pad.
Since there are usually more I/O pads than available tester channels, an IC tester can test only a portion of the ICs on the wafer at any one time. Thus the “prober” holding the wafer must reposition the wafer under the probes several times so that all ICs can be tested. It would be advantageous if all ICs on a wafer could be contacted and tested concurrently without having to reposition the wafer.
One way to reduce the number of tester channels needed to do this is to concurrently connect the same tester channel to corresponding I/O pads of a large number of ICs on the wafer. For example an IC tester tests a random access memory (RAM) by writing data into each RAM address, reading it back out, and determining whether the data read out of the RAM matches the data written into it. When the tester has a sufficient number of channels to separately access I/O pads of more than one RAM, it can independently test several RAMs concurrently.
However it is also possible for a tester to concurrently test several RAMs without requiring so many tester channels by connecting the data and address I/O pads of several RAMs in parallel to the same set of tester channels while connecting the control I/O pads of the RAMs to separate tester channels. This arrangement enables the tester to concurrently write access several RAMs while allowing it to consecutively read access each RAM. The arrangement therefore reduces the number of write cycles needed to test the RAMs, substantially reduces the number of channels needed to concurrently test all of the RAMs on the wafer, and eliminates the need to position the wafer under the interconnect structure more than once. Thus instead of providing a set of signal paths, each connecting a single tester channel to a single IC pad, an interconnect structure for a wafer-level tester could provide a set of buses, each providing a path from a single tester channel to a large number probes accessing IC pads.
When such buses are formed by traces on a printed circuit board (PCB) each bus should make efficient use of PCB area since many buses must share a relatively small amount of PCB area above each IC. Also each bus should deliver the signal to ICs with as little variation in edge timing as possible and with as little distortion as possible.
Logic signals have been commonly distributed to many nodes on a PCB using stripline or microstrip traces in a “daisy-chain”, or “star” or “stubbed” bus configurations.
A daisy-chain bus is also intolerant of open-circuit faults; an open circuit fault anywhere on the daisy-chain bus will prevent the signal from reaching any node beyond the fault. Since an interconnect structure for a wafer-level tester would have a large number buses formed by small traces, since each bus would include a large number of nodes on each bus, and since each bus would be implemented by small traces, there would be many places on the bus were a fault could occur, and any one fault would render the interconnect structure unsuitable for use in a wafer-level tester interconnect system since several ICs on each wafer would be untestable.
The stubbed bus arrangement is often preferable over the star bus arrangement of
Assume tester channel 32 produces a square wave test signal rising from a low logic level to a high logic level. As the test signal edge travels from tester channel 32 to all pads 34 via interconnect system 30, the interconnect system distorts the signal, and the wave front appears a little different to each IC I/O pad 34.
Note also that the effective difference in signal timing at the bus nodes is thus much greater than can be accounted for by the difference in signal path lengths between the two ICs. The additional delay is caused by the difference in signal distortion. Note that wave front 50 rises more rapidly toward the T/H than wave front 52. This happens because the early portions of the wave front reaching ends of stubs are reflected back to node 21 adding to the rate at which capacitance at that node is charged prior to time T3. Since the IC 38 most distant from the test signal source 32 seeing signal 52 is near the end of a stub, the reflection has a more pronounced effect at the end of signal 52. Note the substantial overshoot of waveform 52 of
The daisy-chain bus of
Like a daisy-chain bus, an open circuit fault on the stubbed bus can prevent the input signal from reaching more than one node 14. Hence an open circuit fault in a stubbed bus incorporated into an interconnect system for a wafer-level integrated circuit would also render the interconnect system unsuitable for use.
What is needed is a transmission line structure for conveying a signal to several PCB nodes that makes more efficient use of PCB space than a star bus, exhibits substantially less variation in signal path delay than a daisy-chain bus, provides less distortion than a daisy-chain or stubbed bus, and maintains signal integrity at all nodes in spite of an open-circuit fault.
An interconnect structure in accordance with the invention employs a closed-grid bus to link an integrated circuit tester channel to an array of input/output (I/O) pads on a semiconductor wafer so that the tester channel can concurrently communicate with all of the I/O pads.
The interconnect structure includes a circuit board with sets of contact pads mounted on its upper and lower surfaces. Each upper surface contact pad suitably receives a pogo pin, coax cable or other conductor from a corresponding one of the tester channels. Spring contacts formed on the semiconductor wafer suitably link each wafer I/O pad to a separate one of the contact pads on the lower surface of the circuit board.
Traces on the circuit board implement an array of bus nodes, each corresponding to a separate one of the I/O pads on the wafer. The circuit board includes at least two layers. Traces mounted on a first circuit board layer form a set of first daisy-chain buses, each linking all bus nodes of a separate row of the bus node array. Traces mounted on a second circuit board layer form a set of second daisy-chain buses, each linking all bus nodes of separate column of the bus node array. Vias and other circuit board interconnect ends of the first and second daisy-chain buses so that they form the closed-grid bus interconnecting all of the bus nodes.
The closed-grid bus makes nearly as efficient use of available space on the PCB layers as conventional stubbed and daisy-chain buses, yet produces less variation in signal path delay between bus nodes, provides less signal distortion and is more tolerant of open circuit faults.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a bus for distributing a signal to several nodes.
The concluding portion of this specification particularly points out and distinctly claims the subject matter of the present invention. However those skilled in the art will best understand both the organization and method of operation of the invention, together with further advantages and objects thereof, by reading the remaining portions of the specification in view of the accompanying drawing(s) wherein like reference characters refer to like elements.
In some applications it is possible to allow the same tester channel to concurrently access corresponding pads of more than one IC 62. For example, an IC tester typically tests a random access memory (RAM) by writing data into each RAM address, reading it back out, and determining whether the data read out of the RAM matches the data written into it. In such application interconnect system 66 may connect the data, address and some of the control I/O pads 74 of several RAMs in parallel to the same set of tester channels while connecting, for example only a read/write control I/O pad of the RAMS to separate tester channels. With such interconnect arrangement, the tester can concurrently write access several RAMs then successively read access each RAM. Such an interconnect arrangement can reduce the number of channels needed to test all the ICs on a wafer or reduce the number of times the wafer has to be repositioned under the interconnect structure and reduces the total number of write cycles needed to test all of the RAMs. Thus interconnect system 66 can speed up wafer testing.
The present invention relates to the manner in which interconnect structure 66 links various tester channels CH1-CH7 to more than one IC I/O pad. Note that as shown in
Interconnect structure 66 includes a printed circuit board (PCB) 68, a set of pogo pins 70 and a set of spring contacts 72. The conductive spring contacts 72 are formed on the upper surface of wafer 64, each extending upward from a separate I/O pad 74 to contact one of a set of contact pads 80 formed on an underside of interconnect structure 66. Pogo pins 70 (or, alternatively, other conductors such as coaxial cables) extend downward from channels CH1-CH7 to contact a set of pad 81-87 formed on the upper surface of circuit board 68. PCB 68 includes traces and vias forming a set of buses 91-94 linking pads 81-84 to a set of bus nodes 76. A set of isolation resistors 78 link each bus node 76 to a corresponding pad 80. Other signal paths 95-97 link pads 85-87 to corresponding ones of pads 80 via others of isolation resistors 78.
Resistors 78 are isolation resistors; they prevent a short to ground at any I/O pad from affecting the ability of any bus 91-94 to convey test or IC output signals to other I/O pads 74. Thus a short circuit in any IC 62 will not inhibit testing of other ICs. Isolation resistors 78 also reduce the loading on the channels CH1-CH7. Isolation resistors 78 need not be necessarily be included in the signal paths connecting channels CH5-CH7 to ICs 62.
Interconnect Bus Architecture Criteria
The present invention relates in particular to the architecture of the buses 91-94 within PCB 68, each of which distributes a test signal from one of channels CH1-CH4 arriving at one of pads 81-84 to several bus nodes 76, or conveys IC output signals arriving at any of several nodes 76 back to one of pads 81-84. As discussed in detail below, the signal paths within PCB 68 are formed by traces on various layers of the PCB and vias linking the layers. Although only four buses 91-94 are shown in the simple example of
To facilitate proper signal timing during a test, it is important to keep variations in signal path delay between any channel CH1-CH4 and each IC I/O pad to which it is linked within a relatively narrow range. For test signals, the signal path delay is the time interval between the moment one of channels CH1-CH4 generates a state change in an output test signal and the time one of ICs 62 detects that state change in the test signal as it arrives at a pad. For IC output signals, the signal path delay is the time interval between the moment an IC 62 produces a state change in an output signal at an I/O pad 74 and the time one of channels CH1-CH4 detects output signal the state change. Thus we would also like to provide buses 91-94 that limit variations in signal path delay.
A prior art “daisy-chain” bus architecture as illustrated in
A prior art “star” bus as illustrated in
In accordance with the invention, each bus 91-94 is implemented as a “closed-grid” bus. As discussed below, a closed-grid bus makes almost as efficient use of PCB space as a stubbed bus, but does not produces as much signal distortion or signal timing variation as a stubbed bus. A closed-grid bus is also tolerant of open circuit faults in the conductors forming the bus because it provides redundant paths between each bus node 76 and one of contact pads 81-87. Thus when implemented as closed-grid buses, any of buses 91-94 can have one (or more) one open-circuit faults while still maintaining test signal integrity at all bus nodes 76.
Closed-Grid Bus Architecture
Closed-grid bus 100 may be thought of as an improvement to the conventional stubbed bus illustrated in
Assume the TEST signal input to pad 101 is driven from a low logic level to a high logic level and that receiver circuits in the ICs under test determine that the TEST signal changes state when it rises above a threshold level midway between its low and high logic levels. We would like the voltage at each node 108-127 to rise to that threshold level as nearly as possible at the same time to minimize variation in time at which receiver circuits linked bus nodes 108-127 detect a TEST signal state change.
The TEST signal will drive all of nodes 108-127 to the high voltage level, but first it must supply enough energy into each node to charge the input capacitance of the IC pad linked to that node. Since the TEST signal edge arrives at node 108 before it arrives at any other node 109-127, it will begin charging the capacitance at node 108 before it begins charging the capacitance at any other. The TEST signal will begin charging nodes 126 and 127 last since it must travel the greatest distance to reach those nodes. When the wave front of the incoming TEST signal reaches node 108, only a portion of the TEST signal energy passes into node 108 and begins charging the capacitance at that node. Much of the TEST signal energy passes on to nodes 109, 110 and 113, and some of the TEST signal energy is reflected back toward pad 101. A similar splitting and reflection of TEST signal energy happens as the TEST signal wave front reaches each other node 109-127. Since such splitting of TEST signal energy at each node helps to reduce the variation in signal path delay. It is helpful to provide as many paths as possible between nodes.
Referring to the prior art stubbed bus of
The closed-grid bus 100 of
We can also see by comparing
Note that a single fault anywhere in closed-grid bus 100 (other than between pad 101 and node 108) will not prevent the TEST signal from arriving at any node 108-127 because there are more than one signal path between bus node 108 to any other bus node. Thus closed-grid bus 100 is open-circuit fault tolerant. When we implement buses 91-94 of
Example PCB Layout
In the simple example of
Thus has been shown and described a closed-grid bus in accordance with the invention for distributing signals to several nodes, and an interconnect structure employing a closed-grid bus for linking channels of an IC tester to pads of multiple integrated circuits on a wafer. The closed-grid bus architecture, which can be efficiently implemented by traces on a multiple layer PCB, provides less variation in signal path delay, provides less signal distortion, maintains better signal integrity and is more fault tolerant than prior art daisy-chain and stubbed buses.
While the forgoing specification has described preferred embodiment(s) of the present invention, one skilled in the art may make many modifications to the preferred embodiment without departing from the invention in its broader aspects. The appended claims therefore are intended to cover all such modifications as fall within the true scope and spirit of the invention.
|Cited Patent||Filing date||Publication date||Applicant||Title|
|US3068403||Jan 27, 1960||Dec 11, 1962||Western Electric Co||Test probe|
|US3821645||Mar 13, 1973||Jun 28, 1974||Honeywell Inf Systems Italia||Device for testing the operation of sequential integrated circuital units|
|US4281449||Dec 21, 1979||Aug 4, 1981||Harris Corporation||Method for qualifying biased burn-in integrated circuits on a wafer level|
|US4290015||Oct 18, 1979||Sep 15, 1981||Fairchild Camera & Instrument Corp.||Electrical validator for a printed circuit board test fixture and a method of validation thereof|
|US4791363||Sep 28, 1987||Dec 13, 1988||Logan John K||Ceramic microstrip probe blade|
|US4853624||Nov 9, 1988||Aug 1, 1989||Northern Telecom Limited||Tunable microwave wafer probe|
|US4862077||Feb 13, 1989||Aug 29, 1989||International Business Machines Corporation||Probe card apparatus and method of providing same with reconfigurable probe card circuitry|
|US4894612||Sep 23, 1988||Jan 16, 1990||Hypres, Incorporated||Soft probe for providing high speed on-wafer connections to a circuit|
|US4968931||Nov 3, 1989||Nov 6, 1990||Motorola, Inc.||Apparatus and method for burning in integrated circuit wafers|
|US4994735||Nov 14, 1989||Feb 19, 1991||Leedy Glenn J||Flexible tester surface for testing integrated circuits|
|US5012187||Nov 3, 1989||Apr 30, 1991||Motorola, Inc.||Method for parallel testing of semiconductor devices|
|US5086271||Jan 12, 1990||Feb 4, 1992||Reliability Incorporated||Driver system and distributed transmission line network for driving devices under test|
|US5148103||Oct 31, 1990||Sep 15, 1992||Hughes Aircraft Company||Apparatus for testing integrated circuits|
|US5237268||Aug 7, 1991||Aug 17, 1993||Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba||Film carrier structure capable of simplifying test|
|US5241266||Apr 10, 1992||Aug 31, 1993||Micron Technology, Inc.||Built-in test circuit connection for wafer level burnin and testing of individual dies|
|US5294776||Aug 10, 1992||Mar 15, 1994||Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba||Method of burning in a semiconductor device|
|US5307010||Sep 30, 1992||Apr 26, 1994||Texas Instruments Incorporated||Wafer burn-in and test system|
|US5397997||May 6, 1993||Mar 14, 1995||Nchip, Inc.||Burn-in technologies for unpackaged integrated circuits|
|US5399505||Jul 23, 1993||Mar 21, 1995||Motorola, Inc.||Method and apparatus for performing wafer level testing of integrated circuit dice|
|US5442282||Jul 2, 1992||Aug 15, 1995||Lsi Logic Corporation||Testing and exercising individual, unsingulated dies on a wafer|
|US5444366 *||Feb 4, 1994||Aug 22, 1995||Texas Instruments Incorporated||Wafer burn-in and test system|
|US5457400||Jul 23, 1993||Oct 10, 1995||Micron Technology, Inc.||Semiconductor array having built-in test circuit for wafer level testing|
|US5497079||Aug 31, 1993||Mar 5, 1996||Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.||Semiconductor testing apparatus, semiconductor testing circuit chip, and probe card|
|US5497379||Jan 26, 1995||Mar 5, 1996||Texas Instruments Incorporated||Method and apparatus for selectable parallel execution of test operations|
|US5532614||Apr 28, 1995||Jul 2, 1996||Texas Instruments Incorporated||Wafer burn-in and test system|
|US5541524||Sep 23, 1993||Jul 30, 1996||Nchip, Inc.||Burn-in technologies for unpackaged integrated circuits|
|US5548223||Feb 16, 1995||Aug 20, 1996||Tektronix, Inc.||Probe adapter for electronic device|
|US5576630||Jun 16, 1994||Nov 19, 1996||Nitto Denko Corporation||Probe structure for measuring electric characteristics of a semiconductor element|
|US5592632||Jun 6, 1995||Jan 7, 1997||Monolithic System Technology, Inc.||Defect tolerant integrated circuit subsystem for communication between a module and a bus controller in a wafer-scale integrated circuit system|
|US5594273 *||Jun 7, 1995||Jan 14, 1997||Motorola Inc.||Apparatus for performing wafer-level testing of integrated circuits where test pads lie within integrated circuit die but overly no active circuitry for improved yield|
|US5608335||Dec 27, 1993||Mar 4, 1997||Sgs-Thomson Microelectronics, S.A.||Method for the testing of integrated circuit chips and corresponding integrated circuit device|
|US5608337||Jun 7, 1995||Mar 4, 1997||Altera Corporation||Method and apparatus of testing an integrated circuit device|
|US5623214 *||Sep 4, 1996||Apr 22, 1997||Hughes Aircraft Company||Multiport membrane probe for full-wafer testing|
|US5654588||Jun 7, 1995||Aug 5, 1997||Motorola Inc.||Apparatus for performing wafer-level testing of integrated circuits where the wafer uses a segmented conductive top-layer bus structure|
|US5654647||Aug 23, 1995||Aug 5, 1997||Hewlett-Packard Company||Multiple lead voltage probe and method of making same|
|US5682472||Mar 17, 1995||Oct 28, 1997||Aehr Test Systems||Method and system for testing memory programming devices|
|US5689515||Apr 26, 1996||Nov 18, 1997||Teradyne, Inc.||High speed serial data pin for automatic test equipment|
|US5701666||Apr 16, 1997||Dec 30, 1997||Motorola, Inc.||Method for manufacturing a stimulus wafer for use in a wafer-to-wafer testing system to test integrated circuits located on a product wafer|
|US5736850||Sep 11, 1995||Apr 7, 1998||Teradyne, Inc.||Configurable probe card for automatic test equipment|
|US5794175||Sep 9, 1997||Aug 11, 1998||Teradyne, Inc.||Low cost, highly parallel memory tester|
|US5852581||Jun 13, 1996||Dec 22, 1998||Micron Technology, Inc.||Method of stress testing memory integrated circuits|
|US5872459 *||Apr 29, 1992||Feb 16, 1999||Hughes Aircraft Company||Method of testing integrated circuits|
|US5894484||Apr 28, 1997||Apr 13, 1999||Credence Systems Corporation||Integrated circuit tester with distributed instruction processing|
|US5898312||Apr 30, 1997||Apr 27, 1999||Hewlett-Packard Company||Multiple lead voltage probe and method of making same|
|US5917329||Apr 17, 1997||Jun 29, 1999||International Business Machines Corporation||Substrate tester having shorting pad actuator method and apparatus|
|US5952838 *||Mar 21, 1996||Sep 14, 1999||Sony Corporation||Reconfigurable array of test structures and method for testing an array of test structures|
|US5990696||May 12, 1997||Nov 23, 1999||Delaware Capital Formation, Inc .||Test fixture with self contained shorting means for testing small scale test packs|
|US5995915||Jan 29, 1997||Nov 30, 1999||Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.||Method and apparatus for the functional verification of digital electronic systems|
|US6047469||Nov 12, 1997||Apr 11, 2000||Luna Family Trust||Method of connecting a unit under test in a wireless test fixture|
|US6064213||Jan 15, 1997||May 16, 2000||Formfactor, Inc.||Wafer-level burn-in and test|
|US6078187||Jan 27, 1998||Jun 20, 2000||Credence Systems Corporation||Hemispherical test head for integrated circuit tester employing radially distributed circuit cards|
|US6107815||Feb 23, 1996||Aug 22, 2000||Infineon Technologies Ag||Test circuit and testing method for function testing of electronic circuits|
|US6107818||Apr 15, 1998||Aug 22, 2000||Teradyne, Inc.||High speed, real-time, state interconnect for automatic test equipment|
|US6228684 *||Dec 28, 1999||May 8, 2001||Fujitsu Limited||Wafer-level package, a method of manufacturing thereof and a method of manufacturing semiconductor devices from such a wafer-level package|
|US6275962||Oct 23, 1998||Aug 14, 2001||Teradyne, Inc.||Remote test module for automatic test equipment|
|US6351134||May 7, 1999||Feb 26, 2002||International Business Machines Corporation||Semiconductor wafer test and burn-in|
|US6603323||Jul 10, 2000||Aug 5, 2003||Formfactor, Inc.||Closed-grid bus architecture for wafer interconnect structure|
|US6703854||Aug 22, 2002||Mar 9, 2004||Renesas Technology Corp.||Burn-in apparatus having average voltage calculating circuit|
|US6784677||Apr 2, 2003||Aug 31, 2004||Formfactor, Inc.||Closed-grid bus architecture for wafer interconnect structure|
|US6812691||Jul 12, 2002||Nov 2, 2004||Formfactor, Inc.||Compensation for test signal degradation due to DUT fault|
|US6917214||Oct 23, 2002||Jul 12, 2005||Infineon Technologies Ag||Method for testing a plurality of devices disposed on a wafer and connected by a common data line|
|US7276922||Apr 27, 2004||Oct 2, 2007||Formfactor, Inc.||Closed-grid bus architecture for wafer interconnect structure|
|Citing Patent||Filing date||Publication date||Applicant||Title|
|US7960990||Jun 14, 2011||Formfactor, Inc.||Closed-grid bus architecture for wafer interconnect structure|
|US20100264947 *||Apr 20, 2010||Oct 21, 2010||Formfactor, Inc.||Closed-grid bus architecture for wafer interconnect structure|
|International Classification||H05K1/00, H05K1/02, G01R31/28, G01R1/073|
|Cooperative Classification||H05K2201/09254, G01R31/318511, G01R1/07378, G01R31/31926, G11C2029/2602, G11C29/56, H05K1/023, H05K1/0216, Y10T29/49117, H05K1/0289|
|European Classification||G01R1/073B9C, H05K1/02C2, G11C29/56, G01R31/319S4|
|Oct 4, 2012||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4
|Oct 4, 2012||SULP||Surcharge for late payment|