Patent ID: 7446544
Filing Date: 2008-11-04
Classification: G01R

Abstract:
1. A probe device suitable for use in conducting electrical inspection of a great number of integrated circuits formed on a wafer, which comprises: a circuit board for inspection having a great number of inspection electrodes on a front surface thereof; a probe card having a circuit board for connection, on the back surface of which a plurality of terminal electrodes have been formed in accordance with a pattern corresponding to a pattern of the inspection electrodes of the circuit board for inspection, and a contact member, which is provided on a front surface of the circuit board for connection, and on which a great number of contacts brought into contact with respective electrodes to be inspected of the integrated circuits on the wafer, which is an object of inspection, are arranged, in which the respective terminal electrodes of the circuit board for connection are arranged so as to be opposed to the inspection electrodes of the circuit board for inspection; an anisotropically conductive connector, which is arranged between the circuit board for inspection and the circuit board for connection in the probe card, and electrically connects the respective inspection electrodes to the respective terminal electrodes by being pinched by the circuit board for inspection and the circuit board for connection; and a parallelism adjusting mechanism for adjusting a parallelism of the circuit board for inspection to the wafer and a parallelism of the circuit board for connection to the wafer, wherein the parallelism adjusting mechanism is equipped with a location-varying mechanism, which relatively displaces the circuit board for inspection or the circuit board for connection in a thickness-wise direction of the anisotropically conductive connector; wherein spacers for regulating the deformation quantity of the anisotropically conductive connector are provided between the circuit board for inspection and the circuit board for connection in the probe card; wherein the anisotropically conductive connector is composed of a frame plate, in which a plurality of anisotropically conductive film-arranging holes each extending in a thickness-wise direction of the frame plate have been formed corresponding to electrode regions, in which electrodes intended to be connected in the circuit board for connection and the circuit board for inspection have been arranged, and a plurality of elastic anisotropically conductive films arranged in the respective anisotropically conductive film-arranging holes in this frame plate and each supported by the peripheral edge of the anisotropically conductive film-arranging hole, and wherein the spacers are arranged on both sides of the frame plate in the anisotropically conductive connector, and the spacers are each in the form of a frame, in which openings are formed in regions corresponding to the regions where the elastic anisotropically conductive films in the anisotropically conductive connector have been formed, and have finely projected portions each composed of an elastic member on at least contact surfaces with the circuit board for inspection and contact surfaces with the circuit board for connection.