Patent Abstract:
An electronic device for use with a probe head in automated test equipment. The device includes a plurality of semiconductor devices arranged to provide at least one driver/receiver pair where the driver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to transmit a signal to at least one device under test and the receiver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to receive a signal from the at least one device under test. Each of the plurality of semiconductor devices is fabricated using either a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) or metal-on-insulator (MOI) technology and has a thickness less than about 300 μm exclusive of any electrical interconnects. The at least one driver/receiver pair is adapted to mount directly to the probe head.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/889,764 entitled “High Impedance, high Parallelism, High Temperature Memory Test System Architecture” filed Feb. 14, 2007 which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present invention is related generally to automated test systems; more specifically, the invention is related to driver/receiver-type circuits employed in testing memory and similar high speed electronic devices. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Complexity levels of electronic device testing vary tremendously, from simple manual low-volume/low-complexity testing performed with perhaps an oscilloscope and voltmeter, to personal computer-based medium-scale testing, to large-scale/high-complexity automated test equipment (ATE). Manual and personal computer-based testing are typically applied when testing discrete devices, specific components of an integrated circuit, or portions of a printed circuit board. In contrast, ATE testing is used to test functionality of a plurality of complex integrated circuits (ICs) such as memory circuits or hundreds of dice on a wafer prior to sawing and packaging. 
         [0004]      FIG. 1  shows a block diagram of an automated test system  100  of the prior art. The test system  100  includes a test system controller  101 , a test head  105 , and a test prober  107 . The test system controller  101  is frequently a microprocessor-based computer and is electrically connected to the test head  105  by a communication cable  103 . The test prober  107  includes a stage  109  on which a semiconductor wafer  111  may be mounted and a probe card  113  for testing devices under test (DUTs) on the semiconductor wafer  111 . The stage  109  is movable to contact the wafer  111  with a plurality of test probes  115  on the probe card  113 . The probe card  113  communicates with the test head  105  through a plurality of channel communications cables  117 . 
         [0005]    In operation, the test system controller  101  generates test data which are transmitted through the communication cable  103  to the test head  105 . The test head in turn transmits the test data to the probe card  113  through the plurality of communications cables  117 . The probe card then uses these data to probe DUTs (not shown explicitly) on the wafer  111  through the plurality of test probes  115 . Test results are then provided from the DUTs on the wafer  111  back through the probe card  113  to the test head  105  for transmission back to the test system controller  101 . Once testing is completed and known good dice are identified, the wafer  111  is diced. 
         [0006]    Test data provided from the test system controller  101  are divided into individual test channels provided through the communications cable  103  and separated in the test head  105  so that each channel is carried to a separate one of the plurality of test probes  115 . Channels from the test head  105  are linked by the channel communications cables  117  to the probe card  113 . The probe card  113  then links each channel to a separate one of the plurality of test probes  115 . 
         [0007]    With reference to  FIG. 2 , a prior art tester portion  200  of a typical ATE system designed for high speed testing, such as memory applications, has a driver  201  and comparator  203  pair electrically connected through a transmission line  205  to a single pin on a device under test (DUT)  207 . The driver  201  sends write signals to the DUT  207  through a resistive element  211  while the comparator  203  acts as a receiver for reading signals generated by the DUT  207 . When the tester portion  200  is writing a signal to the DUT  207 , the driver  201  is enabled by closing a write switch  209  and the comparator  203  is disabled by opening a read switch  213 . During a read operation, the driver  201  is disabled by opening the write switch  209  and the comparator  203  is enabled by closing the read switch  213 . 
         [0008]    The physical length of the transmission line  205  is roughly four feet long in a typical ATE test cell used for wafer sort and three feet long in an ATE system used for package test. Since the transmission line  205  is so long, when the tester  200  is reading from the DUT  207 , a 50 ohm parallel termination resistor  217  is added into the circuit by closing a termination switch  215 . The 50 ohm termination resistor  217  is used to avoid reflections along the transmission line  205 . 
         [0009]    With reference to  FIG. 3  and continued reference to  FIG. 2 , a typical 100 MHz waveform  300  produced by the prior art tester portion  200  is displayed. Closing the termination switch  215  during a read operation reduces an amplitude of the signal received by the comparator  203  to approximately 2.1 V compared with a 3.0 V output from the DUT  207 . The amplitude is reduced since the 50 ohm termination resistor  217  creates a voltage divider. If the termination switch  215  is left open, the voltage divider effect is eliminated but reflections on the transmission line  205  produce a distorted waveform  400  ( FIG. 4 ). For comparison, an actual waveform  500  ( FIG. 5 ) emanating from the DUT  207  is shown in  FIG. 5 . 
         [0010]    As is readily discernible by one skilled in the art with reference to the waveforms in  FIGS. 3-5 , to test the DUT  207  with a data rate of greater than 100 MHz during a read cycle, the termination switch  215  must be closed to prevent significant distortion of the read signal. The disadvantage of closing the termination switch  215  is that the DUT  207  must source enough current to drive the 50 ohm termination resistor  217 . In today&#39;s handheld consumer electronics markets, customers demand several days of usage of their products (such as iPods® and other MP3 devices, cellular phones, digital cameras, etc.) before having to recharge batteries internal to the product. Consequently, more and more memory devices are being designed such that the output buffers conserve power (i.e., battery life). Hence, many memory devices increasingly cannot source the current to drive the 50 ohm termination resistor  217  required during ATE applications. Consequently, a maximum data rate for the testing the DUT  207  cannot be optimized. 
         [0011]    For example, a typical memory device inside a contemporary cell phone runs at a frequency of 100 MHz. If the memory device cannot source enough current to drive the 50 ohm termination during ATE testing, the maximum test frequency will be only approximately 10 MHz. Furthermore, most memory devices are intended to be used in applications that do not require a 50 ohm termination since other devices are typically located in close proximity. When the memory device, or any other DUT, sources sufficient current to drive the 50 ohm termination during ATE testing, the electrical characteristics of the device change. Most notably, the 50 ohm termination creates a voltage divider and the DC levels measured at the comparator are attenuated. 
         [0012]    Once of the key reasons that the driver/receiver pair has been located physically far away from the DUT in prior art applications is due to the wide temperature range over which a DUT is tested. A common temperature test range is from −40° C. to +150° C. The prior art driver/receiver pair typically cannot operate over this large temperature range while maintaining performance specifications. The performance specifications are especially critical for parametric tests such as I CC  and other leakage current tests. 
         [0013]    Therefore, what is needed is a means to test a large plurality of DUTs in high speed applications while maintaining signal integrity read from the DUTs while ensuring that a full range of temperature testing can still occur. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    In an exemplary embodiment, the invention is an electronic device for use with a probe head in automated test equipment. The device includes a plurality of semiconductor devices arranged to provide at least one driver/receiver pair where the driver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to transmit a signal to at least one device under test and the receiver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to receive a signal from the at least one device under test. Each of the plurality of semiconductor devices is fabricated using metal-on-insulator technology and has a thickness less than about 300 μm exclusive of any electrical interconnects. The at least one driver/receiver pair is adapted to mount directly to the probe head. 
         [0015]    In another exemplary embodiment, the invention is an electronic device for use with a probe head in automated test equipment. The device includes a plurality of semiconductor devices arranged to provide at least one driver/receiver pair where the driver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to transmit a signal to at least one device under test and the receiver portion of the driver/receiver pair is configured to receive a signal from the at least one device under test. Each of the plurality of semiconductor devices is fabricated using silicon-on-insulator technology and has a thickness less than about 300 μm exclusive of any electrical interconnects. The at least one driver/receiver pair is adapted to mount directly to the probe head. 
         [0016]    In another exemplary embodiment, the invention is an electronic device for use with a probe head in automated test equipment. The device includes a first plurality of semiconductor devices arranged to form at least one driver arranged to couple and transmit a signal to a device under test. A second plurality of semiconductor devices is arranged to form at least one receiver arranged to couple and receive a signal from the device under test. Each of the second plurality of semiconductor devices has a thickness less than about 300 μm exclusive of any electrical interconnects. The at least one receiver is adapted to mount directly to the probe head. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an ATE system of the prior art. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a DUT driver/receiver testing apparatus employed in the ATE system of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a typical prior art reduced-amplitude waveform of a DUT during a read operation using the testing apparatus of  FIG. 2  with appropriate parallel termination. 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a typical prior art waveform of a DUT during a read operating using the testing apparatus of  FIG. 2  without parallel termination. 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a typical prior art waveform originating at and generated by the DUT. 
           [0022]      FIG. 6  is an cross-sectional view of an exemplary semiconductor fabrication process used to produce semiconductor-based transconducting devices utilized in the present invention. 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is a block diagram of an exemplary probe card using transconducting devices fabricated in accord with  FIG. 6 . 
           [0024]      FIG. 8  is a schematic representation of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention replacing a single comparator with multiple comparators. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0025]    In an exemplary embodiment, a driver/receiver pair is fabricated that can be mounted physically close to the DUT, thereby eliminating detrimental effects of the prior art related to long transmission lines and termination networks. Using a metal-on-insulator (MOI) fabrication or silicon-on-insulator (SOI) fabrication process, the MOI-based driver/receiver pair may be fabricated to maintain low leakage currents (e.g., less than 5 nA), even at 150° C., due to a silicon dioxide layer incorporated between a base substrate and an active semiconductor layer. 
         [0026]    In  FIG. 6 , an exemplary four-terminal FET  600  is fabricated in a metal-on-insulator (MOI) or silicon-on-insulator (SOI) process where an isolated bulk semiconducting material is actively driven by a control signal. The exemplary FET  600  includes a base substrate  601 , a first dielectric layer  603 , a semiconductor layer  605 , a second dielectric layer  609 , and a silicided control gate  611 . A dopant material is, for example, implanted or diffused into the semiconducting layer  605  to form source and drain regions  607 . An electrode (not shown) added in later process steps allows access to the semiconductor layer  605  through a body terminal. 
         [0027]    In a specific exemplary embodiment, the semiconducting layer  605  is approximately 2 μm (2000 nm) in thickness and is bonded to the first dielectric layer  603 . The base substrate  601  may be a silicon wafer. Alternatively, another elemental group IV semiconductor or compound semiconductor (e.g., Groups III-V or II-VI) may be selected for the base substrate  601 . In lightweight applications or flexible circuit applications, such as those employed in a cellular telephone or personal data assistant (PDA), the FET may be formed on a polyethyleneterephthalate (PET) substrate deposited with silicon dioxide and polysilicon followed by an excimer laser annealing (ELA) anneal step. In still other applications, the base substrate  601  may be comprised of a dielectric material directly, such as a quartz photomask, thereby obviating a need for the first dielectric layer  603 . In this case, the semiconducting layer  605  may be formed directly over the photomask. 
         [0028]    In a case where the base substrate  601  is a semiconductor wafer, the wafer may contain a buried oxide layer (not shown) placed below a polysilicon layer (not shown) to prevent transport of carriers through the underlying bulk semiconducting material. The polysilicon is then treated at an elevated temperature to reform crystalline (i.e., non-amorphous) silicon. In still another embodiment, the base substrate  601  is formed from intrinsic silicon, thereby effectively limiting transport of carriers due to the high resistivity of intrinsic silicon. 
         [0029]    If either the substrate  601  or the semiconductor layer  605  is chosen to be comprised of silicon, the second dielectric layer  609  may be a thermally-grown silicon dioxide layer. Alternatively, the second dielectric layer  609  may be a deposited layer, for example, a silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, or oxynitride layer deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD) techniques. In a specific exemplary embodiment, the second dielectric layer is comprised of silicon dioxide, 100 Å to 500 Å in thickness. 
         [0030]    Regardless of the fabrication techniques employed, either deep or shallow trenches (not shown) may be subsequently etched into the semiconducting layer  605  to isolate either adjacent devices or adjacent circuits. Any silicon-containing layers may be etched, for example, with potassium hydroxide (KOH) or tetra-methyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH). an edge wall angle of the shallow trench formed within the semiconducting layer  605  will depend on several factors such as a crystallographic orientation of the semiconducting layer  605  and the type of etchant employed. The edge wall angle determines, to some extent, how densely transistor may be fabricated and still remain electrically isolated from one another. 
         [0031]    Deep trench isolation techniques are frequently employed to isolate device elements laterally. Formation of deep trench isolation can be partially accomplished with low-cost dielectric films. Low-cost dielectric films typically have less desirable electrical characteristics (e.g., dielectric breakdown strength or higher shrinkage values) than a high-quality film. However, a high-quality film is a better choice for filling shallow trench isolation (STI) regions and for producing cap layers over a deep trench fill layer. A skilled artisan can readily envision how either deep or shallow trenches may be beneficial to portions of the present invention described herein. 
         [0032]    In the case of an ATE wafer sort operation, a bare die fabricated using MOI or SOI fabrication techniques may be soldered directly to a probe head of the probe card. With reference to  FIG. 7 , an exemplary probe card test arrangement  700  includes a probe printed circuit board (PCB)  701 , a multilayer ceramic probe head  705 , and a test structure  709  containing a plurality of DUTs (not shown directly). The multilayer ceramic probe head  705  is in electrical communication with the probe PCB  701  through a plurality of electrical interconnects  703 . A plurality of probe contact points  711  allows electrical communications with an ATE system (not shown) once the plurality of probe contact points  711  is brought into contact with the test structure  709 . 
         [0033]    The multilayer ceramic probe head  705  is typically a multilayer low- or high-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC or HTCC). Various mounting techniques known in the art may be used for attaching a plurality of MOI-based driver/receiver dice  707  directly to an underside of the multilayer ceramic probe head  705 . For example, a series of ball-grid arrays (BGA) solder balls, electroplated bumps, controlled collapse chip connection (C4) bump technology, or other types of bonding features known in the art may be used to electrically and mechanically connect the plurality of MOI-based driver/receiver dice  707  to the multilayer ceramic probe head  705 . 
         [0034]    Using ordinary fabrication techniques of the prior art, the plurality of MOI-based driver/receiver dice  707  ordinarily cannot be mounted directly to the multilayer ceramic probe head  705  since the plurality of probe contact points is generally too short to allow compression onto the test structure  709 . Typically, probe contact points are approximately 750 μm long and require about 100 μm of compression onto a test surface. thus, any mounted dice must be substantially less than 650 μm in thickness. The 650 μm thickness includes the thickness of any mounting structures, such as C4 columns after collapse. Therefore, the plurality of MOI-based driver/receiver dice  707  are thinned to approximately 300 μm or less exclusive of the mounting structures or electrical interconnects. The MOI-based dice  707  may be thinned by a variety of techniques. In a specific exemplary embodiment, a backside of the base substrate  601  ( FIG. 6 ) containing the MOI-based dice  707  is lapped after device fabrication is completed. Lapping techniques are known in the art. 
         [0035]    Another thinning technique involves using a thinned wafer bonded to a thicker base substrate for processing. In a specific exemplary embodiment, a base substrate (not shown) is comprised of five layers prior to device processing. The five layers include, for example, a thick base substrate (e.g., a 750 μm thick silicon wafer), a dielectric bonding layer, a thinned wafer (e.g., a 50 μm thick silicon wafer), an SOI dielectric, and a epitaxial layer upon which the MOI-based dice are produced. Thinned semiconductor wafers (e.g., thinned to 30 μm or less) are commercially available (e.g., Silicon Valley Microelectronics, Inc, Santa Clara, Calif.). Processing may then proceed in accordance with the exemplary method described with relation to  FIG. 6 . After processing, the thick base substrate is removed from the dielectric bonding layer by de-bonding techniques. Thus, a plurality of thin MOI-based semiconductor devices remains. 
         [0036]    In another exemplary embodiment of the invention (not shown), the driver/receiver pair describe with reference to  FIG. 7  may be split into multiple functional dice. Thus, driver dice may be placed far from the DUT, for instance, located physically inside the ATE system, and receiver dice remain mounted on the probe head. Advantages of this mounting arrangement include having a much greater density of DUTs tested in parallel as the receiver dice mounted on the probe head are roughly only one-half the size of the driver/receiver combination, thereby allowing more possible connections to more DUTs. 
         [0037]    In yet another exemplary embodiment described with reference to  FIG. 8 , the single comparator may be replaced by multiple comparators and a logic circuit that will compare expectant data to multiple DUTs simultaneously. The exemplary test arrangement  800  includes an ATE system component  801  and a semiconductor testing component  851 . The ATE system component  801  includes a driver  803 A and comparator  803 B pair electrically connected through a transmission line  805  to the semiconductor testing component  851 . The semiconductor testing component  851  may be mounted to the probe head (not shown) to eliminate any deleterious transmission line effects associated with the prior art. Individual components on the semiconductor testing component  851  may be fabricated in accordance with fabrication methods described with reference to  FIG. 6 . Further, the individual components may be contained on a single die or may be fabricated on a plurality of dice. 
         [0038]    The driver  803 A sends write signals through a resistive element  811  to the semiconductor testing component  851  while the comparator  803 B acts as a receiver for reading signals received from the testing component  851 . A value of the resistive element  811  is chosen to match the characteristic impedance of the transmission line. An input impedance to a typical DUT is usually quite high (e.g., greater than 10 megaohms). Consequently, to avoid multiple reflections and standing waves from being created along the transmission line, one reflection is allowed at the DUT and the reflected waveform is terminated at the resistive element  811 . When the DUT is driving the ATE (e.g., during a read cycle), the termination element  817  is used to terminate the transmission to avoid reflections. 
         [0039]    When the driver  803 A is writing a signal to the testing component  851 , a signal from the driver  803 A is enabled by closing a write switch  809  and any signal passing to the comparator  803  is disabled by opening a read switch  813 . During a read operation, the driver  803 A is disabled by opening the write switch  809  and closing the read switch  813 . The comparator  803  is now enabled to read signals passing from the testing component  851 . 
         [0040]    The physical length of the transmission line  805  is roughly four feet long in a typical ATE test cell used for wafer sort and three feet long in an ATE system used for package test. When the exemplary test arrangement  800  is configured to read from the testing component  851 , a 50 ohm parallel termination element  817 , coupled on one end to a termination voltage, V T , is coupled into the circuit by closing a termination switch  815  coupled to the opposite end of the termination element  817 . The 50 ohm termination element  815  is used to avoid reflections along the transmission line  805 . 
         [0041]    The semiconductor testing component  851  includes a write switch  853  and a read switch  855 . A plurality of comparators  859 A- 859   n  provide input to an exclusive nor (XNOR) gate  857 . A plurality of DUTs  865 A- 865   n  is coupled to the semiconductor testing component  851  and may be selected for writing or reading operational testing through a series of write switches  861 A- 861   n  is coupled to the semiconductor testing component  851  and may be selected for writing or reading operational testing through a series of write switches  861 A- 861   n  and a series of read switches  863 A- 863   n,  respectively. When one or more of the series of read switches  859 A- 859   n  is closed, selected ones of the plurality of DUTs  865 A- 865   n  are electrically coupled to associated comparators  859 A- 859   n.  Each of the plurality of comparators  859 A- 859   n  can source sufficient current to avoid significant amplitude reduction of propagated signals found in the prior art. Alternatively, the XNOR gate  857  can source sufficient current to supply the ATE system component  801  once the read switch  855  is closed. 
         [0042]    For a write operation, the write switch  853  and one or more of the series of write switches  861 A- 861   n  is closed in order to drive a signal to one or more of the plurality of DUTs  865 A- 865 N. The write signals are transmitted from the driver  803 A in the ATE system component through the write switch  809  (in a closed position) and the transmission line  805 . In a specific exemplary embodiment, all switches used in the exemplary test arrangement  800  are semiconductor-based transconducting devices (e.g., an FET transistor) which may also be used to passively fan-out signals transferred to or from a plurality of DUTs. The passive fan-out avoids the necessity for an active buffer, thus reducing power dissipation. An additional advantage in not employing an active buffer is that all voltage and timing signals from the plurality of DUTs may be parametrically tested directly (e.g., no analog information will be lost (such as voltage levels and timing) as would be the case with an active buffer arrangement). Also, high DC current fan-outs of 400 mA or more are possible due to the four-terminal technology employed herein. 
         [0043]    In the foregoing specification, the present invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments thereof. It will, however, be evident to a skilled artisan that various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims. For example, a skilled artisan will recognize that alternative techniques and methods may be utilized to form or deposit certain layers described herein. The alternative techniques and methods are still included within a scope of the appended claims. For example, there are frequently several techniques used for forming a material in addition to CVD deposition or thermal growth techniques (e.g., plasma-enhanced vapor deposition, epitaxy, sputtering etc.). Although not all techniques are amenable to all material types described herein, one skilled in the art will recognize that multiple methods for fabricating a material may be used. Also, various alloys, compounds, and multiple layers of stacked materials may be used, such as with conductive materials formed within the vias. For example, other types of semiconductors may be substituted for an epitaxial layer in the SOI. Additionally, various circuit components and elements produced by fabrication techniques described are exemplary only and illustrative in a functional sense more than a strict component selection sense. A skilled artisan will recognize other circuit elements which may be used instead of or in addition to circuit components described herein. 
         [0044]    Additionally, various embodiments described herein describe specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention. In addition to embodiments already described, the present invention has several additional advantages. For example, a read cycle data rate can be optimized for devices that cannot drive 50 ohm terminations or for devices that are intended to be used to drive other devices that are in close physical proximity. Memory and other devices may be tested without using an impedance balancing termination and run at the same frequency that the device would in its intended application These and various other embodiments and techniques are all within a scope of the present invention. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6