Probe Card Movement Mechanism for Compact Wafer Inspection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional probe apparatuses require significant space to accommodate larger semiconductor wafers due to increased wafer diameters, necessitating a solution to reduce the real estate of the wafer inspection region.
Innovation Solution
A probe apparatus with a card clamp mechanism, wafer chuck, and card movement mechanism that allows the probe card to be moved to multiple positions, reducing the required inspection area by optimizing the movement range of the wafer chuck and probe card.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the wafer diameter is increased to accommodate larger semiconductor wafers, then the wafer inspection range must be increased, but the real estate of the wafer inspection region increases
Solution Approach 1:
The probe card is made movable relative to the wafer chuck through a card movement mechanism that can position the probe card at multiple locations. This dynamic configuration allows the same physical probe card to service larger wafer areas by moving it to different positions, thereby increasing the effective inspection range without permanently increasing the apparatus footprint.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of expanding the inspection area in a single plane, the system introduces movement in another dimension (card position) to achieve coverage of larger wafer areas. The probe card can be positioned at multiple locations, effectively using spatial reconfiguration rather than simple area expansion.
2Device complexity
If the probe card is made fixed to simplify the structure, then the device complexity is reduced, but the real estate of the wafer inspection region increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system accepts increased structural complexity by introducing a card movement mechanism that enables the probe card to move to multiple positions. This dynamic capability allows compact configuration where the probe card services a larger area through movement rather than requiring a permanently large fixed inspection region.
Data Source
AI summary
A probe apparatus is provided, comprising a card clamp mechanism configured to detachably clamp a probe card equipped with a plurality of probes; a wafer chuck configured to mount a semiconductor wafer thereon and configured to provide contact between electrodes formed in the semiconductor wafer with the probes of the probe card clamped by the card clamp mechanism with an operation of a drive mechanism; and a card movement mechanism configured to move the card clamp mechanism and the probe card clamped by the card clamp mechanism to at least two positions spaced at a predetermined distance.