Patent ID: 8741666

Claim:
A method for testing the integrity of wire bonds formed between copper-containing wires and the bond pads of a plurality of microelectronic devices, the bond pads of the plurality of microelectronic devices fabricated from a metallic material different than the copper-containing wires, the method comprising: selecting at least one wire bond sample produced in conjunction with the wire bonds formed between the copper-containing wires and the bond pads of the plurality of microelectronic devices; contacting one or more copper-containing wires of the wire bond sample with a liquid copper etchant to cause separation of the copper-containing wires from the bond pads and exposure of the underlying wire-pad interfaces, the liquid copper etchant comprising a sulfate-based oxidizing agent dissolved in a solvent; and measuring the formation of intermetallic compounds at the exposed wire-pad interfaces to assess the integrity of the wire bonds formed between the copper-containing and the bond pads of the plurality of microelectronic devices.