DE9004562U1 - Test device for testing electrical or electronic test objects - Google Patents

Description

6157

atg electronic GmbH D-6980 Wertheim-Reicholzheim

Test device for testing electrical or electronic test objects

The invention relates to a testing device according to the preamble of claim 1 or the preamble of claim 2-

Such testing devices are known in numerous versions (e.g. US-PS 4,443,756 and 4,528,560; D^-OS 23 64 786; DE-C233 43 274; Yearbook of the German Society for Chronometry e.V., Volume 30, p. 269 276). The known testing devices have in common that they have contact needles or spring contact pins for contacting test points on the respective test object, which have in common that their permissible smallest center distances from one another are relatively large.

A touch point of the test device is understood to be a point which, if it is opposite a test point of the test object when testing a test object, is suitable for connecting this test point to the test circuit system of the test device for the purpose of transmitting test signals. The individual touch point can be represented by a single surface or by

5» ^J 1 · »

several surfaces can be formed. This surface or these surfaces can preferably be point-like, but can also have other configurations, e.g. linear, circular, etc.

A test point of the test object is a point or a plurality of points of the test object to which test signals can be fed from the test circuit system of the test device via a touch point of this test device opposite it or from which test signals can be transmitted to the test circuit system via the relevant touch point of the test device. A test point of the test object can be, for example, at least one point of a conductor track, a pad, a metallic connection, an electrical or electronic component of the test object, a socket or the like.

A test signal can be, for example, an electric current, an electric voltage or the like, which is fed via a touch point of the test device to an assigned test point of the respective test object or is derived by means of a touch point of the test device from a test point of the test object for the purpose of feeding it to the test circuit system of the test device. The test circuit system of the test device then checks, for example, between which test points of the respective test object a test signal can be transmitted. The test signal can be used to test which test points of the respective test object have electrical connections, e.g. electrical connections caused by conductor tracks of the test object.

g connections or unauthorized short circuits. In this way, it can also be determined whether there are unauthorized interruptions between predetermined test points that are supposed to be electrically connected to one another, which, like unauthorized short circuits, can also

.Q represent faults in the test object. Test signals can, if desired, also be used for measuring purposes, e.g. measuring properties of electronic components of test objects or whether such properties do not exceed predetermined tolerances, etc. In the test circuit system of the test device that generates the test signals, the test signals or the absence of test signals to be returned are then evaluated to determine whether the respective test object is electrically fault-free or faulty, whereby the fault locations of a test object can also be displayed or printed out in coordinates in some other way. Other possibilities also exist.

In the known test devices of the type mentioned at the beginning, each touch point is formed by the head or tip of a metallic contact pin, which is made of steel, copper-beryllium or the like. The contact pin can be an axially spring-supported pin, or a bent or

straight needle that can be used as a bending spring or bending needle 30

Or it can be a spring contact pin. The common feature of the known contact pins is that they take up a relatively large amount of space. This limits the use of such test devices and their testing options.

It is an object of the invention to provide a testing device of the type mentioned at the beginning, which enables particularly small center distances between adjacent touch points.

n-iooo iiifnsha ui-prt arf inHiinnenamäR Hli-ri-h H4a 4 &eegr;

*·® The test device specified in claim 1 is solved. A test device according to the invention according to a second solution to this problem is described in claim 2.

The term "semiconductor-based" means

understood that the H-plate consists only of a semiconductor or can also have additional components or the like, e.g. doping, metallic coatings, etc. The semiconductor can be an elementary semiconductor (an elementary semiconductor consists of a single chemical element, e.g. silicon) or a compound semiconductor (Brit.: compound sSmiccMuwCtcr' a ^compound snsIbisitsr snthslt several chemical elements, e.g. GaAs) or a

other semiconductors.
26

By providing touch points on a semiconductor-based plate itself, preferably all starting points, according to claim 1, these touch points can have extremely small center distances from one another and can thus be arranged in a density that was previously not even remotely achievable (density = number of touch points per unit area). High densities of touch points can also be achieved with correspondingly thin contact needles in the test device according to claim 2, since abutments on the H-plate

smaller center distances between adjacent contact needles than with known test devices with contact needles are possible. It is also possible to provide both contact needles and touch points formed by the or at least one �EEgr; plate on a test device in order to be able to test other test objects in a simple way, in which a test is first carried out using points contacted only by contact needles and then the test object is brought closer to the at least one �EEgr; plate so that touch points provided on it can now also participate in a second test together with the contact needles. However, it is possible and in many cases advantageous to provide the touch points of the test device either only on its at least one �EEgr; plate or

only to be provided on contact needles. 20

The test device can be a

lnl<ti>icrhe PWfFiinn Hoe ianiliann Prüflinas

«&bull;&bull;»**&trade;&mdash;·&mdash; — — ·* &mdash; * &mdash; — 9 *J β — - - - W-

have a test circuit system that includes switching means for electrically connecting

^° touch points of the test device to the test circuit system, whereby when testing a test object, test signals can be transmitted between touch points of the test device and test points of the test object located opposite them, which can be evaluated in the test circuit system to determine whether the test object is electrically fault-free or not. This test circuit system of the test device can preferably be integrated at least partially, often expediently completely or essentially into the at least one H-plate

&bull;&bgr; ¹ """

The H-plate can consist of a single component, preferably a wafer or a chip. However, it can also be composed of several components, preferably several wafers or chips, which form the H-plate.

Assembled: are. e.g. by gluing practically

Ω

connected to one another without any gaps or arranged on a common surface of a support and connected to the &EEgr; plate directly or via the surface supporting it. In many cases it is also expedient for the test device to have at least

I^ has two Ω-plates that are arranged at a distance from one another in a support device, for example when several test objects are to be tested simultaneously by the test device, whereby each of the test objects to be tested simultaneously is assigned an Ω-plate of the test device. Or it can also be provided that in the case of test objects whose test points are distributed over fields that have a not insignificant distance between them, each such field or group of fields is assigned an Ω-plate of the test device for the test.

If the EEgr; plate is designed as a chip, it can be the size of a wafer, for example. In many cases, it could then be called a giant chip.

The test device can also be manufactured inexpensively and have ^an extremely large number of touch points. It can preferably have many thousands of touch points,

in particular, hundreds of thousands or millions or even many millions of touch points are obtained. The costs of the test device per touch point are or can be significantly lower than the costs of conventional test devices. The test device according to the invention is also less susceptible to failure and can be structurally smaller and more compact than conventional test devices and also opens up new possibilities for testing test objects.

This can often be useful instead of contacting

Test points can be provided by touch points so that all or a part of the test points of test objects can be touched without contact by touch points of the test device, which means that the test signals can be transmitted to the relevant test points from the touch points located opposite them at a distance without contact and can be received without contact by the test points at the assigned touch points. It can also often be expedient to provide a pad, an end area of a conductor track or a

² ^ other points on a test object are no longer to be contacted by a single touch point as before, but to be contacted several times or multiple times simultaneously by touch points or to be touched without contact, i.e. to provide a corresponding number of test points at the relevant point on the test object and thereby increase the safety of the test.

New testing areas can also be opened up that were previously not possible with conventional testing devices using contact pins .

&Iacgr;&Ggr;

were accessible, among other things, more miniaturized and more highly integrated microelectronics can also be tested using appropriate test devices, which were not accessible to the test devices with contact pins up to now.

e Touch points are arranged in such a narrow grid that the conductor track structures freely opposite the touch points can be displayed in a grid-like manner on the pads of the test objects and can be visually or automatically

can be checked for errors. 15

Preferably, at least the front side of the H-plate or at least one H-plate of the test device can have a micromechanically produced structure, wherein it can preferably be provided that the touch points and/or the abutments for contact needles are arranged or provided on micromechanically produced structures of this surface of the H-plate.

The �EEgr; plate can preferably be designed in such a way that it has at least one semiconductor region for some, particularly expediently for all or almost all of the touch points assigned to it, which has at least one p-region and/or at least one n-region, which region or regions can preferably be heavily doped. A p-region is understood to be an electrically conductive region of the �EEgr; plate produced by doping or in some other way, which in excess (majority) has holes of positive

polarity (also called defect electrons).

An eeegr; region is understood to be a dated or otherwise produced, electrically conductive region which has an excess of electrons. In this context, it should also be noted that the semiconductor material of the H-Plastic, its components, can be undoped or doped in large quantities.

The «-plate or the like, when it is assembled from the components, --«one of these components can preferably be a single crystal c<~9r based on a

¹ ^ Single crystal of a semi-metal, i.e. a semiconductor, whether in a single-layer or multi-layer structure. Preferably semi-metals with good elastic properties are considered, namely both elementary semiconductors

² ^ from a single element (eg Si, Ge), as well as compound semiconductors containing two or more elements (eg GaAs). Silicon is particularly suitable.

In some cases, the �EEgr; plate or at least one of its components can be polycrystalline or, in special cases, amorphous on the basis of semi-metal, i.e. on the basis of semiconductors.

In preferred embodiments, at least

some, preferably all or almost all touch points or abutments are provided on projections on the front side of the at least one &EEgr; plate facing the respective test object. These projections can preferably be produced by micro-machining

ib

They can preferably be approximately cylindrical

_c shapes with, for example, round or &ogr;

angular, for example approximately square cross-sections or they can also have other shapes, _preferably tapering over at least a portion of their length, for example as truncated cones, cones, truncated pyramids, pyramids or the like.

At least some, preferably all or almost all

'$ Touch points can be conveniently a region of the H-plate

% which has a p-region and/or a

% 15

■:| &eegr;-area that is involved in conducting the

j| Touch point transmittable test signals or the

&Phi; p-area or &eegr;-area of such a district can also

'form the district concerned itself. Such a

% The region can preferably be a p-region or

:,j; &eegr;-area of a &EEgr;-plate integrated in the respective

L grated electrical component, especially ^V: of a transistor or diode connected to the Switching, sparring or rectifying the

'' &ldquor;_ assigned touch point from the test circuit system ; and from it to the test circuit system

derivable test signals or contributes to them. : Such an electronic component is included in the

the relevant &EEgr; board or the component thereof and thus also forms a component of the test circuit system itself.

If the test circuit system is completely or partially integrated into the at least one &EEgr; plate of the test device

integrated, the relevant electronic

¹ 3ü

T"

e components, conductor tracks or the like can be integrated on the front and/or on the back and/or inside the H-plate or the relevant component or components. Electrical conductors, such as conductor tracks or the like, can be formed by metallic coatings, through-platings or by other measures applicable in microelectronics. In particular, if the individual H-plate or each of its components is made on the basis of a silicon single crystal,

, _ micromechanically manufactured H-plate projections &igr;&ogr;

excellent spring properties comparable to those of spring steel.

Projections having touch points or points on the EEgr; plate or the components that make it up that serve for the electrical connection of contact needles can also be designed in the form of straight or curved bending springs, such as spring rods, leaf springs, spring tongues, elastic membranes or the like.

Depending on the test item and the type of test, all or only a part of the test device's contact points can be used in the test.

participate by programming the 30

The programming of the test circuit system for a series of identical test items can, for example, be carried out automatically in principle, as with the known test devices.

using a faultless test specimen. 35

g For the contactless transmission and reception of test signals by means of touch points of the test device, these test points can preferably be designed as small coils micromechanically manufactured on the relevant �EEgr; plate or the relevant component, which thus serve as transmitting antennas or receiving antennas for test signals. These coils can be so tiny, for example, that they can have maximum diameters of 1 to 50 micrometers or even smaller or larger diameters, and their distances from the respective test object during its testing can be kept so small that the respective coil, when supplied with alternating current or pulse trains, only has a narrowly defined test point, the diameter of which is not or

2Q is only slightly larger than the diameter of the coil, is effectively subjected to the electromagnetic field generated by it and thus induces a small electrical voltage at this test point, whereby at least one other such coil of a

2g other point of the relevant conductor of the test object at a distance and the test current induced in this electrical conductor then induces in the relevant at least one other coil of the same or a

_O q other &EEgr;-plate a test current or a test voltage which is evaluated by the test circuit system of the test device.

Electromagnetic fields can therefore be used for the contactless transmission of test signals between touch points and test points. However, it is also

It is conceivable and possible to provide other measures for this purpose, for example capacitive coupling between a touch point and a test point of the respective test object at a distance from one another or by transferring charge carriers between a touch point and a test point, such as ions or electrons, for example by means of tip discharges using micromechanically manufactured , semiconducting or metallically coated tips on the at least one �EEgr; plate.

If touch points are formed by the front ends of contact needles, these contact needles can contact electrically conductive p-regions and/or n-regions or metallic coatings of the at least one �EEgr; plate for their electrical connection.

The contact needles can be curved needles, straight rigid pins or so-called bent needles. A bent needle is a straight needle that, when subjected to a sufficiently large axial force, bends towards its free end that contacts the test object and thus has an axially springy effect.

Preferably, the touch points of the test device can be arranged in such a narrow grid that the test device can be used to test different sized test objects up to a maximum test object size. The density of the touch points can be so high that existing

Conductor structures can be recognized, so that one can obtain an image, which can also be stored digitally if desired, of the respective conductor structure of the test object on its surface opposite the touch points of the test device and can compare it visually or automatically with a nominal value of the conductor structure and thus determine visually or automatically from the comparison whether the test object in question is faultless or faulty with regard to this depicted conductor structure. This imaging method is particularly suitable for unequipped, only superficially provided with conductor tracks or

similarly coated circuit boards or for single-layer chips, but this imaging method can also be used for other test objects. This also results in greater tolerances for the position of the test object relative to the touch points and, if required, each test object can be determined for its position relative to the field of touch points and the test circuit system can be mathematically reprogrammed to the position of the individual test object so that this relative position is not critical. This is also possible if no image of the conductor structure is obtained, but only sections of the conductor structure. One or more points can be arranged on each test object, the position of which can be determined by optics, by at least one touch point or by other means, e.g. electrical, based on their coordinates. The computer converts the test program for the test object in question based on these coordinates if these coordinates deviate from the target coordinates.

The test devices according to the invention can be used with particular advantage for testing unpopulated circuit boards and chips with very small pads. However, they can also be used for testing other electrical or electronic test objects, for example for testing populated circuit boards.

As mentioned, the respective &EEgr;-plate can be single-layered ;: ^:

or multi-layered, or that they are &psgr;

The semiconductor material can be single-layered or

multilayered, in which case they can be referred to as multilayer plates or multilayer components. These components or this H-plate can also be referred to as semiconductor components or semiconductor plates, regardless of whether they have integrated circuits in them and whether they have metallic coatings for conductor tracks, insulating layers or the like and

has vias etc. or not and . ^: _; .

is unpopulated or not. Conductor tracks and j

Contacts can be made of aluminum, Gold or other suitable metals, which

can be applied using conventional methods.

When the micromechanical production of surface structures of the �EEgr; plate or its components is mentioned above, it should be noted that the term "micromechanics" is known to those skilled in the art. For example, reference is made to the HEUBERGER textbook "Mikromechnik", Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York London Paris Tokyo 1989, in which various micromechanical production processes are also described ;■ i nd .

16 6157

The drawing shows examples of the 5

Invention represented^ It: -»igen:

Fig. 1 is a partial side view of a test device according to an embodiment of the invention in a broken and partially sectioned representation, with a test specimen and the support carrying it being indicated in dash-dotted lines,

Fig. 2A is a partial plan view of the 15

&EEgr;-plate according to Fig. 1, where only the

projections are shown and the conductor tracks are omitted,

Fig. 2B Bottom views of plates of the 20

and 2C test device according to Fig. 1,

Fig. 2D is a diagrammatic oblique view of a small section of the &EEgr; plate according to

Fig. 2A, which only shows a single 25

projection, schematically showing the

the transistors formed in the p-region and the η-region of the projection and their electrical conductor connections are also shown,

Fig. 2E is a partial section through the &EEgr; plate according to Fig. 1 in an enlarged view,

Fig. 3 is a partial plan view of a

H-plates, with a conductor track of a test object contacted by them shown in dash-dotted lines

Fig. 4 a partial top view of a test piece, where only those touch points (projection r> are shown, -- which are short-circuited via the conductor tracks of a test piece shown at the first point, -- to show the possibility of the grid-like representation of such conductor tracks of a test piece by the test device,

Fig. 5 a partial section through a variant of a

&EEgr; plate according to another embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 6 a partial plan view of a H-Platta according to an embodiment

the invention,

Fig. 7 is a partial plan view of a

&EEgr; plate according to another embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 8 a partial section through the H-plate

according to Figure 7, seen along the section line 8-8 in an enlarged view, 35

Fig. 9 shows a partial section through a &EEgr;-plate according to another embodiment of the

Invention,

Fig. 10 a partial plan view of a

&EEgr;-plate according to another embodiment of the invention, wherein eirlge in it

integrated circuits are indicated by circuit symbols,

Fig. 11 a partial section through the &EEgr;-plate according to Fig. &iacgr;&ogr; seen along the cutting line

11-11, where a test specimen is also shown in detail,

Fig. 12 is a section through Fig. 11 taken along section line 12-12,

Fig. 13 is a partial plan view of the &EEgr; plate according to Fig. 2A, where only a single projection is shown and connected to its p-region and &eegr; region,

Circuits integrated into the &EEgr; board are partially shown symbolized by electrical symbols,

Fig. 14 a partially sectioned side view

a test device having contact needles for testing a test object shown in side view, the contact needles being supported on a &EEgr; plate sir.d

3b and means for clamping the contact needles

schematic and partially cut with 5

are shown,

Fig. 15 shows a detail from Fig. 14 in an enlarged view,

10

Fig. 16A a variant of the test device according to

Fig. 14 in partial cutaway side view.

Fig. 16B, one cut through each projection of the 15

C and D �EEgr; plate of Fig. 16A in two different embodiments in an enlarged view, and

Fig. 17 Basic circuit for controlling a

20

test cell.

First of all, it should be noted that in some of the figures,

but not in all figures, p-regions by 25

drawn small circles and &eegr;-areas are symbolized by drawn points. The small circles are intended to represent the majority of holes (defect electrons) and the points are intended to represent the majority of

present electrons. 30

The test device 6 shown in Fig. 1 partially cut and broken and partially shown and partly only indicated by dash-dot lines has a plate 10 made of semiconductor material

35

- hereinafter also called &EEgr;-plate - which is

a plate 12, which is also made of semiconductor material and is fixedly arranged in a carrier 11, rests with its flat underside. These two plates 10 and 12 are held in a form-fitting manner in a recess 11' of the carrier 11, whereby the plate 10 can move vertically up and down in the recess 11' of the carrier 11 with sliding properties in the direction of the double arrow A.

Both plates 10 and 12 are each composed of several plate-shaped components 15, 16 and 17, 18, respectively, which are firmly connected to one another at their butt joints 13 and 14, for example by laser welding.

For example, these plates 10 and 12 can be composed of two equally large rectangular components 15, 16 and 17, respectively, according to their bottom views shown in Fig. ^2B and 2C, to form the correspondingly larger, also rectangular plate 10 or 12. If necessary, the plate 10 and the plate 12 can each consist of a single component forming it or of more than two components assembled to form it.

For the purposes of the description, it is assumed that these two plates 10 and 12 are composed of the two components 15, 16 and 17, 18 respectively.

These plate-shaped components 15, 16, and 18 can each consist of a single-crystalline

(monocrystalline) disk of a semi-metal, i.e. on the basis of a semiconductor in the manner described in more detail below. They can therefore also be referred to as semiconductor components, regardless of whether or not electronic components such as circuits, transistors, resistors or the like and metallic conductor tracks, contact surfaces or other microelectronic components are integrated into them by coating or in any other way. Parts such as electrical and mechanical components, e.g.

Plugs, sockets, IC chips of the test circuit system or the like may be attached.

The components 15 and 16 can be designed identically to one another and form modules from which the H-plate 10 is composed. Likewise, the components 17, 18 also form modules from which the plate 12 is composed.

Each of the components 15, 16, 17 and 18 is therefore made on a semiconductor basis, preferably from a single single crystal, which can preferably be a silicon single crystal, but optionally also another semiconductor, preferably also a single crystal. Other suitable semiconductors are also possible.

Component 15, 16, 17 and 18 has approximately

cylindrical projections 19 (components 15 and 16) or 20 (components 17 and 18). These projections are micromechanically manufactured from the relevant single-crystal disk, which originally had a constant thickness, for example by etching. According to Fig. 2A, these projections have a square cross-section, but other cross-sections are also possible, for example round cross-sections according to Fig. 6, preferably circular cross-sections.

The projections 19 and 20 have in this embodiment the same cross-sections, but the projections 19 in this embodiment are significantly longer than the projections 20 present below them on the plate 12.

After the micromechanical production of the structured front sides of these components 15, 16, 17 and 18, they can still be subjected to microelectronic treatments to produce electronic components, circuits and the like and can also be provided with metallic coatings, such as conductor tracks or the like and through-platings, or even before the micromechanical processing they can have a preferably single-crystal layered (multilayer) structure with electronic components integrated in the layers, such as circuits and the like, including the application of metallic conductor tracks and other metallic coatings. Such coatings can consist, for example, of aluminium, gold or the like.

In this embodiment, the projections g of the �EEgr; plate 10 are doped in such a way that each projection according to Figs. 2D and 2E has a p-region 21 and n-region 22, which together form a semiconductor region 35, which has a touch point 9, which is connected to the

Half formed front surface of the projection 19

is formed. The two halves of the front test point 9 thus form a left pad 36 and a right pad 37. These are referred to below as "test pads". The areas 21 and 22 lead from the front of the projection 19, i.e. the test pads 36, along two side walls of the projection 19 facing away from each other to the main area 28 of the relevant component IS or 16. Below this main area 28 is the area of the relevant

2Q component 15 or 16, from which the projections 19 protrude in one piece connection with it, so that this main area 28 the relevant component 15 or 16, which can also be referred to as a semiconductor component, with the exception of

»&egr; of its projections.

The p- and n-regions 21 and 22 can preferably be heavily doped. As shown in Figs. 2D and 2E, the regions 21, 22 each form a doped region of a switching transistor 30 and 31 integrated into this component 15 or 16. The conductor track connections 70 to 75 of these transistors 30 and 31 are shown in section in Fig. 20 and in section in Fig. 2E.

2 &Lgr;

24

The diameters of the projections 19, as well as those of the projections 20, can be very small, preferably 2 to 50 micrometers, even smaller or larger as required.

Such a component can have an extremely large number of such projections 19 or 20, preferably from thousands to several or many millions of such projections 19 or 20. Instead of forming each touch point 9 of a projection 19 by a single surface - here by the flat front surface of the projection 19, the touch point 9 can also be formed by several points on the projection, for example by the tips of several prongs 66, as indicated in Fig. 2E by dash-dotted lines, or by several other elevations.

The projections 20 of the components 17 and 18 are arranged vertically below the projections 19 of the components 15 and 16 in order to axially support the axial contact forces exerted by the respective test object on the projections 19. The projections 20 of the components 17 and 18 make it possible for these components to be coated with conductor tracks between the projections 20 and to the side of them, and microelectronically manufactured electronic components such as diodes, transistors, circuits and the like can be integrated into these components 17, 18, which can form parts of the test circuit system. If this is not necessary, the components 17 and 18, i.e. the plate 12, can be omitted and the H-plate

sit directly on the bottom of the correspondingly flatter recess 11' of the carrier 11, whereby in this case it can often be expediently provided that projections can be made on the bottom of the square-like main areas 28 of the components 15, 16 of the h-plate 10, which are also micromechanically manufactured and with which this K-plate 10 sits on the bottom of the recess II ^1. :^ so that the bottom of the H-plate can also be provided with conductor plates produced by coating and any electronic circuits integrated in the main area and other electronic components which form parts of the circuit system.

The semiconductor material from which the components

15 to 18 is elastic, so that the projections 19 and also the projections 20 are axially elastic. This makes it possible for all test points of a test object to be tested, such a test object being shown in dash-dotted lines at 24 in Fig. 1, to be contacted with sufficient force by projections 19 of the H-plate 10. If the elasticity of the projection is too low, the projection can be arranged on an elastic part or area of the H-plate 10 or the relevant component 15, 16, for example on a spring tongue, an elastic membrane or the like. This test object 24 is held and supported on a carrier 25 of the test device 10 that can be moved vertically up and down in order to contact the H-plate 10, which is supported by a non-

m&bgr;

shown lifting mechanism is movable up and down and can be pressed by the test object 24 with adjustable force against the projections 19 of the H-plate 10 opposite it, in order to act in such a way that these respective projections 19 with their end faces forming touch points 9 electrically contact the associated test points 7 of the test object 24.

Since each touch point 9 in this embodiment is approximately half an area of the relevant p-region 21 and half an area of the n-region 22, each projection 19 enables the conduction of positive and negative test signals, i.e. here of positive and negative electrical currents and voltages, whereby the transistors 30, 31 allow the switching on and off of the p- and n-regions 21, 22 forming them.

&ldquor;,j 22 to or from the rest of the test circuit system

&uacgr; serve.

The H-plate 10 can be so large that test pieces of different sizes up to test pieces of a maximum size can be tested on it. This is indicated in the embodiment according to Fig. 1 by the test piece 24 being shown smaller than the H-plate 10, and test pieces can therefore also be tested that are even larger than the

QQ or smaller than the test specimen 24 shown. Also, not all projections 19 opposite a test specimen 24 need to participate in its testing, but it can usually be provided that only a portion of the projections 19 opposite a test specimen 24

predetermined test points of the test object 24 to their

electrical connection to the test circuit system &ogr;

connected to this test device.

This is shown schematically in Fig. 1 in that the section shown by the test object 24 has three conductor tracks 26, 26' and 26'' through projections 13 to κιδικαιδικα-κιδικα. The conductor track 26 is shown in the section shown by two of the projections 19 shown, the conductor track 26* by three of the projections 19 shown and the

Conductor track 26'' also through three of the 15 shown

projections 19. Each of these conductor tracks

can be contacted by further projections arranged in front of and behind the cutting plane, whereby the number of projections 19 that can contact such a conductor track is limited due to the high touch point 20

density can be very large.

In order to determine the faultlessness of such a conductor track 26 b*w. 26' or 26*' of the test object, each

Such conductor track at both its end areas by 25

at least one projection 19 must be contacted.

Because of the high density of touch points, each such end area is contacted by a more or less large number of such projections 19, for example by two to five hundred projections 19, as is shown in an embodiment in Fig. 3 for the conductor track 26. This conductor track 26 is shown here in dash-dotted lines and each circle drawn in the fully drawn section on the front of the H-plate 10

corresponds to a projection 19, whereby these projections 19 are arranged in a narrow, rectangular grid, the rows of which are equally spaced from each other, which are the same size as the spacing of the columns of this grid that intersect them at right angles. The touch points 9 are arranged at the intersection points of these rows and columns of the grid. This conductor track 26 is therefore contacted by a large number of these projections 19.

During the test, conductor track 26 - as well as every

other conductor track - of the test object is checked for faultlessness, i.e. that it has no interruption and that there is no short circuit to other conductor tracks. To do this, the test switching system for the test object in question can be programmed in such a way that only two touch points 9 can be switched on per conductor track, i.e. activated, and all other touch points contacting the relevant conductor track are switched off, i.e. remain inactive, during the test of this conductor track. These two activatable touch points 9 per conductor track are touch points 9 assigned to their two end areas. The test of such a test object can then be carried out in the conventional way, as was the case with previously known test devices, in which each

Conductor track only by two contact pins at their

both end areas were contacted, e.g. according to US-PS 4,443,756 and 4,528,500.

However, due to the possible high touch point densities, the invention creates further possibilities for

Testing which reduces or completely eliminates the risk of test errors. One of these possibilities can be that the test circuit system is programmed in such a way that, of all the touch points 9 contacting a conductor track of a test object, a plurality or multiplicity of touch points 9 contacting these end areas and formed by the end faces of the relevant projections 19 can be activated during the testing of a test object per end region of the relevant conductor track. In the embodiment of Fig. 3, it is assumed that, of all the projections 19 contacting the conductor track 26, only the six projections 19' contacting one end region of this conductor track and the six projections 19'' contacting the other end region of this conductor track can be activated by the test circuit system during a test cycle. During this test cycle, the test circuit system then queries whether there is an electrical short circuit created by the conductor track 26 between at least one of the projections iS ^: and at least one of the projections 19''.

If this is the case for at least one pair of projections ^19f /19", then this conductor track is not interrupted. The further test must then extend to whether this conductor track 26 is in electrical short circuit with at least one other conductor track or component of the test object, which must not be a short circuit. This test can be carried out in such a way that the test circuit system checks whether any of the programmed

Projections 19' or projections 19'' associated

Test points 7 of the test object are in electrically conductive connection, in particular in short circuit with at least one test point of the test object located outside the conductor track 26. If this is the case, then there is a faulty short circuit. If none of the projections 19' is connected to one of the projections 19''

, _ l^iiTw/iAe^Klnoea.-. &iacgr; ef then 1 ianf a -i &eegr; af ahlerKa &PSgr;+·- &ogr;

There is an interruption in the conductor track 26. Such errors can be recorded in coordinates for possible later repair.

^g This test device 6 also makes it possible, due to the very large number of projections 19 and their small center distances from each other, which are therefore arranged in a.Ti very dense grid at its grid points, where the grid dimension, for example,

2Q to 30 micrometers or even smaller or larger, an image of the conductor tracks of the respective test object contacted by touch points 9

electrical short circuit with each other through metallized areas of the test object,

recorded in terms of coordinates or images. Fig. 4 shows this using an example, whereby all projections 19, which are each short-circuited with i-^nder by the test object, are recorded with the values of the relevant coordinates of the grid assigned to them and these touch points can be stored in terms of coordinates and/or displayed in terms of images. In Fig. 4, only the projections 19 and thus their touch points 9 are shown, which are in gc short-circuit with other touch points 9 via the test object and one

It can be seen that the two conductor tracks 26 and 26* shown here can be represented by these touch points 9. The representation of the conductor tracks 26 and 26' is chosen so that they are incorrectly connected electrically by a metallic bridge 23 and it can be seen that this

IQ faulty connection is also clearly visible in the image. The evaluation of such an image or the stored coordinate values of the relevant touch points can be done visually or automatically in a suitable device, given- <■-.,

Ig if carried out by the test circuit system itself, by comparison with a target image.

The preferably provided multiple or multiple scanning .ja of the conductor track of a test object and, if

2Q present, faulty short-circuit connections also has the advantage that if one or the other test point of the test object is not electrically contacted by the associated projection 19 or is not electrically contacted sufficiently,

2£, for example, is too weak for the test object to still reliably indicate whether the object under test is faultless or whether there is actually an electrical fault.

It is also possible to use test devices according to the invention, e.g. the one shown in Fig. 1, to carry out tests by taking numerical or other measurements on test objects, e.g.

also measurements for compliance with predetermined tolerances &ldquo;p. electrical properties, to test specimens, also or

only in such respects to ensure their faultlessness
If a test object has, for example, integrated switching circuits, impedances, capacitances or the like, the properties of such electrical
Components or all or at least one of their functions are measured for faultlessness and
qechecked, including, as mentioned, the
¹ ^ ^j.nhaltuftg vcrl?certain tolerances, e.g. the size of resistors or the like, is also understood.

In this context, it should be explained that the
Invention you regarding such measurements on test

!5 lingen high measurement accuracies can be achieved, especially when the test circuit system is housed in a small or very narrow space with short cable runs, preferably completely or essentially in the
at least one &EEgr; plate and/or at least one semiconductor plate supporting it is integrated. This is also extremely advantageous for testing the conductor tracks of test objects for defects.

Based on Fig. 13, different

Options for switching on and holding the
Touch points 9 of the test device according to Fig. 1 based on an embodiment shown in Fig. 13 for a single projection 19 are briefly described below.

described. This projection 19 (as well as all other projections 19 of the
respective &EEgr;-plate) are two electronic
Switches 30, 31 are connected* which are the transistors 30, 31 shown in Fig. 2E

A«

which are thus integrated into the H-plate 10 and are symbolically represented in Fig. 13 by their circuit symbols. The 9er Schelter 30 is connected to the strongly p-dGt-isrtvf region 21 and the Schelter 31 to the strongly η-doped region 22 of this V^rs^ru-nöas 19, whereby these regions 21, £ ^r simultaneously

IQ areas of the transistors 30 and 31. The

A control component 32 assigned only to the switch 30 is connected to the control component 33 assigned only to the switch 30. Both control components 32, 33 can also be integrated into the H-plate 10 or designed as a register or modified register. The projection IS, the electronic switches 30 and 31 and the assigned control components 32 and 33 form a test cell 76 indicated by a dash-dotted border.

The H-plate 10 therefore has a number of such test cells 76 integrated into it that corresponds to the number of its projections 19, since each projection is assigned such a test cell 76. The edge length of such a test cell can, for example, be in the range of 5 to 50 micrometers, but can also be smaller or larger. The individual test cell 76 contains:

a) a double-funded advantage 19. The

Double doping enables the switching of positive and negative test voltages and

Test currents, i.e. test signals;

b) the electronic switches 3Q and 31 for switching through the touch panel 19 formed by this projection 19 , two test leads 78 and 79 which correspond to conductor tracks produced by coating the H-plate 10 or its corresponding component 15 or 16;

c) the two control components 32 and 33, preferably designed as register cells or modified register cells for controlling the electronic switches 30, 31, which are integrated into the H-plate or into the component concerned. These control components 32, 33 can preferably contain logic gates and one static register each. Their structure can, for example, be similar to that of conventional or largely conventional

memory cells (RAM). Preferably,

It should be provided that two different

Control modes are provided:

I. Switching the switches 30, 31 using the test circuit system for the relevant

Information stored on the test object (memory mode).

II. Switch the switches 30, 31 by Addressing of the test cells 76 via non

shown address lines (decoder mcde).

These modes allow targeted switching through of all or the test cells 76 of the test device programmed for testing the respective test object

for a pattern in memory mode or alternatively fast scanning in decoder mode. Such prin

The concepts of the memory mode and the decoder mode require no further explanation for the expert.

IQ d) Power supply lines for the test cell 76. The control components 32, 33 and the switches 30, 31 of the individual test cells are galvanically isolated and therefore have separate power supplies. These power supplies can be provided, for example, by the

Test leads 77, 78 and two non

shown lines can be reached.

e) Control and address lines. The address lines

can also be used as address lines

2Q. For all test cells 76, each

separately for the p-region 21 and the n-region 22

used, as shown in Fig. 17.

2g I. X Addressing of the column of the grid,

in which the respective touch point 9 is located.

II. Y Addressing of the line of the raster in which the touch point is located

9 is located.

III. WE (Write Enable) Write signal for

Data storage.

ti It

IV. DIN (Data In) data input channel. V. DOUT (Data Out) Data output channel VI. DE (Direct Enable) Switching Lines I to V are conventional technology

in the manufacture of memory ICs. Line VI decides whether the switching of switches 30 and 31 of the relevant test cell 76 is based on the values stored in a memory of the test circuit.

system, which can preferably be designed as a register, stored data (memory mode) or by the applied address.

The addressing of the test cells can be done in conventional

The technique can be achieved by distributing rows and columns of the grid in a decoding module of the test circuit system. This decoding module can be integrated into the �EEgr; board or into a �EEgr; board, but does not have to be contained on it. For example, it can be integrated into the board 12 or in a device 40 arranged outside these boards 10 and 12 and in electrical connection with the H board 10 (Fig. 1).

or similar, which may also include other parts of the test circuit system or, in some cases, the entire test circuit system and its electrical connection to the power supply system.

The individual component 15, 16 may be a chip or

wafer, its size being e.g. 50 mm x 50 mm 5

or can be even larger or smaller. Any failure of individual touch points of the test device during the test of a test object, for example due to insufficient electrical contact of the relevant test point of the test object, is practically irrelevant in view of the high touch point density, as 100% contact of the test points is not necessary if the method of multiple or multiple touching is used.

becomes.
15

Such a component 15 or 16 can contain an extremely high number of test cells 76, for example several hundred thousand to several or many millions.

into an H-plate 10 or into a component such as 15 20

or 16, integrated electronic components, conductor tracks and the like, can be provided on the same or on opposite sides of the &EEgr; board or the component and/or also within them

be.
25

The individual component can be controlled like a normal RAM via address and data lines as well as via corresponding control lines, such as

For example, it is basically used for addressing and reading 30

Touch points by US-PS 4,443,756 and 4,528,500

is known.

For example, in order to carry out the test by means of a test device having a plurality of test cells 76 according to Fig. 13

of a test object whose conductor tracks are contacted at their end areas by a greater or lesser number of activatable, i.e. switchable, touch points 9, one can, for example, provide for the following procedure, as described below with reference to Fig. 3. The p-region 21 of a projection 19' is subjected to a test signal by closing its associated switch 30. Then, while the switch 30 remains closed and the test signal continuously applies to this projection 19', all of the switches 31 of the test device assigned to the other projections 19 programmed for activation are briefly closed one after the other and then the said switch 30 is opened again. This is referred to as a test cycle with the projection 19' in question. After that, corresponding test cycles take place or can take place with the remaining five projections 19'. If at least one of these test cycles or a predetermined number of test cycles is found to be free of defects, then this conductor track is certified as free of defects and the next conductor track is tested accordingly, and so on, until all conductor tracks are certified as free of defects. It can also be provided that the test of a conductor track is aborted to save time as soon as its

freedom from defects has been established. If, however,

If a conductor track is identified as faulty, this is registered and the test of the test object can be aborted or the test can be continued if all the faults of the test object have been identified.

want to register. For example, detected errors can be displayed or printed according to the coordinates of the grid.

Instead of stopping the test of a conductor track, such as conductor track 26, as soon as it is found to be faultless or an error is detected, the test of this conductor track can also be continued and the further test signals indicating its integrity or error will then no longer change this result.

^

It should also be mentioned that the semiconductor wafer from which the individual component 15 or 16 is manufactured _:

is, even before the micromechanical and micro- <

electronic processing p-doped or n-doped

or can also be undoped, ,..·,

ff

The height of the projections 19 can preferably be in the order of 0.1 mm, but can also be larger or smaller. Due to their very small cross-sectional dimensions, they provide sufficient axial resilience. The main area of the H-plate or the relevant component from which the projections protrude can also provide resilience adjacent to the projections. In this context, it should be noted that silicon has particularly good resilience properties, which are comparable to those of steel, so that it is particularly advantageous if the H-plate 10 is made from silicon, and in particular from a silicon single crystal.

g The partial section through a

H-plate 10 differs from that of Fig. 2 essentially in that each projection iS is either only p ⁺ doped or n* doped, whereby these projections 19 can also be arranged _in a uniform pattern at grid points of the grid. In rows and columns of the grid, the doping changes from projection 19 to projection 19, so that in the grid line in question ^, adjacent projections 19 are each p ⁺ and n ⁺ doped and

therefore not every projection 19 with every projection Io

19 for testing a test object in the test circuit system, but only P ⁺ doped projections with n ⁺ doped projections. In this embodiment according to Fig. 5, each projection 19 is also shown as being heavily doped throughout. Depending on the intended doping depth, however, the individual projection can also be only partially heavily doped and this heavily doped region can be connected to a conductor track, such as the conductor track 79'.

These endowed areas of projections 19 25

can be areas of transistors serving to turn on their touch points.

In Fig. 7 and 8, sections of a one- or multi-part H-plate 10 are shown, in which the contact elements used to contact test points of test objects are designed as tips 41 on resilient tongues 42. The resilient tongues 42 as well as their contact tips 41 can be made in one piece.

with the remaining semiconductor material of this H-plate 10 35

These celebrating tongues 42 practically form

Leaf springs, which in this embodiment extend in the plane of the �EEgr; plate 10 and are formed by micromechanical treatment of the original monocrystalline disk of the respective halo conductor, which can preferably be a silicon disk. The tongue 42 with its? core 41 has a uniformly heavily doped region 21 or 22, whereby in the rows and columns of the respective grid, neighboring cores 42 are doped differently with cores 41, and in turn alternate.^ as p* jw. n ⁺ . The following applies:

¹ S d£«;.dlb for this �EEgr;-plate xO what was said about the H-plate 10 according to Fig. 5 applies accordingly. The travel of the contact tips 41 according to Figs. 7 and 8 can be larger than that of the cylindrical projections 19 according to Fig. 5.

It is also possible to provide these tongues 42 in such a way that each tongue 42 has two contact tips arranged next to one another. One of these contact tips is then p* doped and the other n ⁺ doped and accordingly these p- and n-contact tips are connected to electrical conductor tracks formed by coatings via equally doped regions of the tongue 42 and can also be regions of integrated transistors, which of course also applies to the regions 21, 22 in Fig. 8. As indicated in Fig. 5 for a projection 19 by a dash-dotted line, the respective touch point 9 can also be formed by the free ends of several elevations 66 of the projection in question instead of by the front surface of the projection 19.

II·· · I

In the embodiment according to Fig. 9, the

Single-crystal K-plate manufactured on a semiconductor basis 10 or its respective element, if it consists of several components, on its front side electronically manufactured, in itself from the flat

Main area 28 of this plate leading away

tapered projections 19, whereby these projections 19 do not need to be doped here (but can also be doped), since the touch point 9 of each projection 19 is formed by a metallic coating, here each projection is provided with a metallic hood 44 for this purpose. Each such projection 19 serves to contact test points of test objects by means of the tip of its hood 44 forming the touch point 9.

Each hood 44 is connected to a transistor 30' or 31' which serves for its electrical connection to the test circuit system and which is integrated into the H-plate 10. Each transistor after that serves to switch on positive test signals and the remaining transistors to switch on negative test signals, so that with regard to carrying out the testing of test objects, the statements regarding the �EEgr;-plate according to Fig. 5 can apply accordingly.

However, it is also possible for each hood 44 to be selectively supplied with positive and negative test signals by connecting them to two transistors integrated in the H-plate, one of which serves to switch on positive test signals and the other to switch on negative test signals, ts

then, with regard to the conduct of tests, the statements made in relation to Fig. 13 as well as those made in relation to Figs. 2D and 2E can apply accordingly.

In Fig. 10 - 12 are sections of a single

cdsr ssshrteiligsn &EEgr;-&Rgr;1&bgr;**&bgr; IQ of a test device according to a further embodiment of the invention» whose touch points 9 are not used for mechanically contacting the test points of the test objects, but this H-plate 10 is used for contactless touching of test objects, such as 24, by means of coils 45. These coils 45 are here manufactured in a micromechanical way as one piece with the rest of the H-plate 10. In this embodiment, each coil 45 has a uniformly heavily doped region, i.e. a p-doped or a &eegr;-doped region, which serves as

electrical conductor. Or it can also have a metallic coating that serves as an electrical conductor «iiiuoieon Tm αιαλαιαλα-ηιαλαιαλαια can only be used with hfiow.

Pulse trains forming test signals of the same polarity supplied by the test circuit system

In the latter case, it can be fed with alternating current. Each such coil 45 has a single, not completely closed turn, the two ends of which are connected to a voltage source common to all coils 45, whereby all coils

° connected in parallel to one another and can be connected individually and independently of one another to the common voltage source by means of a transistor integrated into the H-plate 10, shown in Fig. 10 as switch 46. Each coil 45 can thus be used as a transmitting

^ou antenna for transmitting an electromagnetic

alternating field to the test point 7 of a test object 24 opposite it or can be connected to a test line 79 of the test circuit system by means of a switch 47, which also forms a transistor, as a receiving antenna. The switches 46, 47 are controlled via associated control components 48, 48', which can be registers, for example. Instead of providing the coil 45 with a single winding, it can also have several windings and, depending on the micromechanical possibilities, it can possibly not only be arranged as a coil lying in one plane

coil, but also as a three-dimensional coil with

several superimposed windings.

The non-contact testing of a test object can, for example,

as follows. Depending on the size of the test object and its test points, all or only a portion of the coils 45 can be programmed into the program connecting them to the test circuit system. Each of these programmed coils 45 can now serve as a transmitting antenna and can be switched on for this purpose using the switch 46 assigned to it. In this case, it is generally advisable to connect only one coil 45 to the voltage source at a time and once this has been done, the remaining coils 45 are then

^ow are connected alternately as a receiving antenna to a receiving circuit. Each coil 45 switched to receive is only then passed through by a current that can be sensed by the test circuit system when it is opposite a test point 7 which is in

" electrical connection with the currently on

The "receiving coils" 45 are thus checked one after the other to see which of them have the same metallic conductive surface of the test object.

¹ ^ test object is connected to the test point of the test object opposite the respective "transmitting coil". The coils opposite all test points of the test object can then be switched on one after the other alternatively as transmitting coils and

¹ ^ each time it is checked which of the coils 45, which now serve as receiving coils, are opposite the same metallically conductive area of the test object and thus possible errors of the test object are preferably detected in terms of coordinates.

.... Here too, it is possible to use such coils 45 to carry out a single or multiple or multiple test of each electrically conductive area of the test object and, if necessary, to display or store an image of the surface metallic areas of the test object in question. These coils can have extremely small dimensions, for example diameters in the order of 5 to 100 micrometers or, if necessary, even smaller or larger. These coils 45 can again be arranged in a uniform grid on the front of the H-plate 10, for example in a grid with a grid dimension of 10 to 100 micrometers or even in even smaller or larger grid dimensions.

In Figs. 14 and 15, an embodiment of a test device 6 is shown which differs from the preceding embodiments in that its contact points 9 are not formed by projections of an H-plate 10, but by metallic ^iU contact needles 49, namely by their front ends, for example by needles 49 made of steel, copper-beryllium or other spring-elastic metals with good electrical conductivity.

*° The rear, rounded ends of the contact needles are arranged in cup-shaped, here conical depressions 51 - hereinafter referred to as cup - of a �EEgr; plate, for example a semiconductor plate 10 based on silicon, in particular a wafer or chip. Each

^ such a cup 51 forms an abutment 52 for the relevant contact needle. In this embodiment, each cup 51 is located in a small semiconductor region 35 of the H-plate 10 that is assigned only to it, half of which is heavily p-doped (region 21) and the other half heavily η-doped (region 22). The separation surface between these two doped regions can be, for example, a plane of symmetry of the cup 51. As in the embodiment according to Fig. 13, each of these two regions 21, 22 can be connected to an electronic switch 30, 31 integrated in the H-plate 10, which is formed by the relevant region 21 or 22 and can be switched on and off by means of control components (not shown) assigned to it, such as registers or the like, for testing test objects. For the implementation

te·· · · &rgr;

For a test and evaluation, the statements made for Fig. 13 can also apply here.

It is also possible to use instead of the single contact needle

49 simultaneously on two differently endowed

areas of the H-plate 10 to sit on, they only |

in a uniformly funded area, i.e. only one

p- or just a &eegr;-area and it ^i

can then be used to carry out a U

The statements made during the examination shall apply accordingly.

The contact needles 49 are bending needles in this embodiment and their front end regions ')" are guided _in an upper guide plate 53 close to their upper tips forming the contact points 9, each of which is opposite a test point 7 of a test object 24 held on a carrier 25 that can be moved vertically up and down, and their rear end regions are guided close to their lower free ends in a rear guide plate 54 of a test adapter designated as a whole by 60.

The upper and lower guide plates 53, 54 have through holes in which the contact needles 49 are guided with plain bearing clearance.

Furthermore, these contact nails 49 penetrate with central areas holes in a clamping plate 55 which can be moved horizontally back and forth and serves to clamp them, which holes are significantly larger in diameter than the holes in the guide plates 53, 54.

The contact needles 43 have, directly below the lower guide plate 54, widened edges in the form of indentations which prevent the needles 49 from being able to move upwards from their normal, unloaded positions. Before a test specimen 24 held on the carrier 25 is tested , the clamping plate 55 is pulled to the left by means of an actuator 57 which forms a piston-cylinder unit and can be connected to a compressed air source, whereby the upper contact tips of the contact needles 49 which form the touch points 9 are pulled downwards. The test specimen 24 is then moved downwards until it touches or almost touches these contact tips, and then the clamping plate 55 is pushed to the right by means of the actuator 57, whereby the contact tips press on the test points 7 with a predetermined force to establish a reliable electrical contact. Their lower ends also come into correspondingly safe electrical contact with the recesses 51 of the H-plate 10 that accommodate them. Now the

Testing of test object 24, e.g. a chip, for

Freedom from errors due to the test circuit system of this test device. The electrical test can also be carried out in the same way as with known test devices whose test adapters have metallic

contact pins, is known per se.

It can also be provided, for example, that the micromechanically produced recesses 51 are provided with metallic coatings which are electrically insulated from one another by the �EEgr; plate.

&bull; ft · · a

and can be connected to the test circuit system via transistors or the like which are also preferably integrated into this H-plate. Here too, it can preferably be provided that the test circuit system is completely or essentially integrated into the H-plate. The H-plate 10 is fastened to a tracer 59 of the test device which carries it, while the carrier 2Z serves to hold the test pieces 24.

The contact needles can have diameters of between 0.01 and 0.2 mm and can be arranged according to a grid of, for example, 1/100 inch or in a larger or even smaller grid or in any other desired manner.

The piston 63 of the actuator 57 can be moved to the left by compressed air and to the right by a spring 64 when the compressed air is released.

In the embodiment according to Fig. 14, the touch point density can easily be made significantly larger, for example so large that in the illustrated cutting plane the individual conductor track or the individual pad of the test object 24 is contacted by several contact needles.

50

Fig. 16A shows a detail of a modification of the test device 6 according to Fig. ^16A . Here, the contact needles 49 are designed as so-called rigid pins, which are only axially loaded by the respective test piece 24 without being bent in the process.

I These contact needles 49, two of which are shown

;; and of which the test device has a large

I number can be found in through holes

?! a front and a rear, fixed

I interconnected guide plate 53, 54 axially

hi' Λ C

;' ^lo slidably mounted. Also firmly connected to the horizontal u; guide plates 53, 54 is a

j?i small illustrated, cut section

I shown H-plate 10, the inmicro- P mechanically manufactured, integral, oblique

s« directed, e.g. cylindrical or leaf spring-like

it has designed projections 19''', each of which

% a cup-shaped recess 51 on the top (Fig 16B)

:j, into which the rear end of a contact

|.; needle 49 engages so that the contact needles 49 on

i# 25 these elastically springy projections 19*'' axially

are supported ⁱⁿ a spring-loaded manner. These projections 19''' form abutments 52 for the contact needles 49 and can in turn be fully or partially heavily doped, either as a p-region or as a ρ,-kfcregion, as shown in an example in Fig. 16C, where this ρ-doped region 22 here can also be the region of a transistor (not shown) integrated into the ρ plate. Or each projection 19 * '' can have two p- and n-regions 21, 22 arranged next to one another (Fig. 16B, where these regions also each contain regions of a transistor (not shown).

integrated transistor), as is the case, for example, with the projections 19 according to Fig. 20. These projections 19·'' serve for the electrical connection of the contact needles 49 to the H-plate 10. These contact needles 49 can in turn have extremely small diameters, for example in the order of 0.1 mm.

The test circuit system can again be designed in any suitable way, for example it can have circuit diagrams that are the same or similar to those known from previously known test devices with contact needles. The test circuit system or parts of it can again be conveniently integrated in a novel way into the H-plate 10 consisting of one or more semiconductor components.

This H-plate 10 is attached to a not shown

Support held together with the guide plates and 54.

It is also possible to coat the projections 19'*' completely or in strips with metal and to let the contact pins 49 rest against this metal coating 44', as shown in an example in Fig. 16D, so that then not a doped region 21 or doped regions 21, 22 serve as the electrically conductive material of the projections 19' ' ', but rather their metal coatings 44' serve for the electrical connection of the contact pins 49 to conductor tracks produced on the main region 28 of the H-plate 10 by coating or to transistors or the like integrated into it.

The �EEgr; plate 10 can in some cases be designed in such a way that it only has metallic coatings on electrical parts, which serve for the electrical connection of the contact needles 49, or if the touch points are provided on it and are metallic, then for the electrical connection of these touch points to the test circuit system, which in this case is not arranged on it, which can, for example, be designed as a separate device that is electrically connected to the at least one �EEgr; plate of the test device. The production of such an �EEgr; plate from a preferably single-crystal semiconductor, in particular from silicon, then still has the important advantage that its micromechanically produced structures enable extremely small center distances between adjacent touch points or the contact needles in the simplest possible way.

Claims (35)

53 6157 claims 1. Test device for testing electrical or electronic test objects, such as circuit boards, preferably unpopulated circuit boards, chips, multi-chip systems or the like, which test device has touch points which, during testing, of a test object are opposed to test points of the test object for transmitting test signals, characterized in that the test device comprises at least one semiconductor-based Plate (10) - hereinafter referred to as &EEgr;-plate - on which at least some touch points (9) are provided. 2. Test device for testing electrical or electronic test objects, such as printed circuit boards, preferably unpopulated circuit boards, chips, multichip systems or the like, which test device has touch points which, when testing a test object, are opposite test points of the test object for transmitting test signals, touch points of the test device being formed by the front ends of contact needles, characterized in that at least some touch points (9) of the test device are formed by the free ends of metallic contact needles (49), their electrical connection to the test circuit 54 system electrically conductive abutments (52)
which are attached to at least one semiconductor-based plate (10) - hereinafter
H-plate - are provided. 3. Test device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized
10 characterized in that it is an electrical ~ Examination of the respective candidate £ W test circuit system comprising switching means Hi for electrical connection of touch points of % Test device to the test circuit system- \ where when testing a test specimen j between the touch points of the test device and them
opposite test points of the test object
effected by the test circuit system; Test signals can be transmitted in the 1 ti Test circuit system can be evaluated to determine whether f the test object is electrically faultless or not. \ 4. Test device according to claim 1 or 3, characterized characterized in that at least half of the Touch points (9), preferably all touch points (9), provided on the at least one H-plate (10)
are. 5. Test device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized characterized in that at least half of the Touch points (9), preferably all touch points (9),
through the front ends of the contact needles (49) are formed. 6. Test device according to one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that the at least one H-plate (10) has a plurality of semiconductor regions (35), each of which is assigned to a touch point (9), each such semiconductor region (35) having at least one p-region (21) and/or at least one n-region (22) which serves to conduct test signals acting on the assigned touch point, and preferably the p-region (21) or the n-region (22) is a heavily doped region of a transistor. (30; 31) is.
15 7. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a test circuit system which is partially integrated into the at least one H-plate (10). 8. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it has a test circuit system which is completely or substantially integrated into the at least one H-plate (10). 9. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the H-plate (10) or at least one &EEgr;-plate consists of a component, preferably a wafer or a chip. 10. Test device according to one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that at least one H-plate (10) consists of several semiconductor 56 ft I Il 16),
crisps t I I basis manufactured components
m preferably from several wafers B is composed. (15,
or 11. Test device according to one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that at least an H-plate (10) based on a single IO crystal semiconductor is manufactured or -«- «one of the components (15, 16) is manufactured on the basis of an electrolytic semiconductor. 15 12. Test device according to zl.·.+... of the previous Claims, characterized in that the H-plate (10) or its components are based on elements^semiconductor, preferably on Silicon-based is or are manufactured. 20 13. Test device according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the H-plate (10) or its components are made on a compound semiconductor basis, preferably on the basis of GaAs. 14. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least the touch points (9) adjacent to or 30 front side of the at least one H-plate (10) has micromechanically manufactured structures and preferably the touch points or the abutments (52) on micromechanically manufactured structures of this front side 35 JlJiII ··· ·&Igr; Ji l> > ■·· «1)1 139··* 13J] 11 «4 · « · » » g can be seen. 15. Testing device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least a partial number of the touch points (9), preferably ₁ q all touch points or almost all touch points, by Surfaces of semiconductor regions serving to conduct test signals and correspondingly doped (21, 22; 22) of the at least one H-plate (10) are formed. ¹⁵ 16. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least some touch points (9), preferably all or almost all touch points are provided on metallic coatings of the at least one H-plate (10). 17. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least some touch points (9) and/or abutments (52), preferably all or almost all touch points or abutments are provided on elastic, preferably micromechanically produced areas, preferably projections (19) of the at least one H-plate (10). 30 18. Test device according to claim 17, characterized in that characterized in that the projections (19) of the H-plate (IC) having touch points (9) are at least partially used to conduct test signals and , _)C appropriately doped semiconductor regions (35) Jb are trained. 19. Test device according to claim 17 or 18, characterized in that at least some of the projections of the at least one H-plate (10) which Tae-hnunk-ho nrior Uirtorlaner &iacgr;*>0\ aiifuoioon iinne- approximately cylindrical or tapering towards their free ends over at least part of their length, preferably approximately cuboid or circular cylindrical or frustoconical or tongue-shaped or flexible or spiral-shaped or pyramidal or frusto-pyramidal shaped. 20. Testing device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least some touch points and/or abutments (52), preferably all touch points (9) or abutments lanorn an tia-r H.Platte &Mgr;&Pgr;\ &iacgr;&ogr; a shark hl ei -her-Re- &mdash;&mdash; g &mdash;&mdash; - - , &mdash; - . &mdash;_&mdash; .. . _■__■_ &mdash;_&Lgr;&mdash;&mdash; _f j &mdash; _ _ . - .. &mdash;&mdash;-__&mdash; zirk (35) for conducting test signals, which has two adjacently arranged, transversely to the front of the H-plate (10) extending doped regions (21, 22), of which one region is a p-region and the other region is an η-region. 21. Test device according to one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that at least one contact needle (49), preferably each contact needle at least when contacting a test object for its electrical connection on an associated semiconductor region (35) of the associated H-plate (10) which is supported by at least one M &igr;' tm - used to conduct test signals and accordingly doped region, preferably by two oppositely doped regions (21, 22). 22. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one contact needle (49), preferably each contact needle on a metallically coated abutment (52) of the H-plate (10) for its electrical Connection at least when testing test items 15 sits on. 23. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the Contact needles (49) as bending needles, folding needles 20 or rigid pins, whereby the Bending needles can be elastically tensioned, preferably transversely to their longitudinal directions, with appropriate bending. 24. Test device according to one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that at least some touch points (9), preferably all or almost all touch points are designed for contactless transmission or receiving test signals, 30 preferably have micromechanically manufactured structures that serve for contactless electromagnetic coupling to test points of the test object. 25. Test device according to claim 24, characterized in that characterized in that on the front side of the H-plate (10) or at least one &EEgr;-plate as touch points a plurality of micromechanically manufactured coils (45) are arranged, which are appropriately doped for conducting test signals and/or have metallic coatings, such that the individual coil forms a transmitting antenna and/or a receiving antenna for test signals to be transmitted between it and the test point (7) of a test object (24) assigned to it, which test signals are transmitted in the test object relative to this coil through it induced or induced in it by the relevant test signal conducted by the device under test. 26. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is designed for multiple testing of conductor tracks (26, 26', 26'') of a test object, wherein the test circuit system is designed such that it concludes that a conductor track of a test object (24) is free from faults if at least one of these tests of the relevant one or a predetermined number of these tests show freedom from faults. 27: Test device according to claim 26, characterized in that for multiple testing of a conductor track of a test object (24), only the two end regions of the conductor track in question are each faced with a plurality of touch points of the test device. ■ ■ t % ψ · 28. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the test circuit system is designed for the grid-like imaging of the conductor tracks (26, 26', 26'') present on the side of a test object opposite the touch points. 29. Test device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the H-plate (10) or at least one H-plate has metallic coatings. 30. Testing device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each touch point (9) is assigned at least one electronic Component, preferably at least one transistor is assigned to each. 31. Test device according to claim 30, characterized in that at least some touch points, preferably all or almost all touch points (9) are assigned at least one transistor each integrated in the relevant '·' ^plate, which has at least one p-conductive or η-conductive region through which the test current flowing to the touch point and/or the test current coming from the touch point can flow. 32. Testing device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the individual touch point is assigned at least one &bull; ( &iacgr; ( ' &iacgr; H-plate (10) integrated electronic switch
{30, 31; 46, 47), preferably at least one
Switching transistor is assigned, which serves to switch the touch point on and off. 33. Test device according to claim 32, characterized in that the electronic switches (30, 31; "/! 46, 47) can be switched through using information that can be stored in the test circuit system y |j (Storage mode). ' 34. Test device according to claim 32 or 33, characterized
characterized in that the electronic switches - _ü (30,- 31; 46, 47) are provided with addressable control circuits " (32,, 33; 48, 48'), preferably electronic registers, which are assigned to the switching of the electronic switches by addressing &phgr; via address lines (decoder mode). p 35. Test device according to one of claims 33 or ' 34, characterized in that the electronic
Switches (30, 31; 46, 47) and preferably also
the control circuits used to switch them
(32, 33; 48, 48') into which at least one H-plate (10) are integrated.