Method and apparatus for evaluating insulating film

• US 6,583,640 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2001
• Issued: 06/24/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Hashimoto, Yukiko, Watakabe, Akio, Eriguchi, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuneo, Kamand
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tung X.
• Application Number:
  US09/808,100
• Publication Number:
  US 20020024351A1
• Time in Patent Office: 831 Days
• Field of Search: 324/754, 324/755, 324/761, 324/756, 324/158.1, 324/73.1, 324/72.5, 324/765, 439/482, 439/843
• US Class Current: 324/762.1
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 22/34 Circuits for electrically characterising or monitoring manufacturing processes, e. g. whole test die, wafers filled with test structures, on-board-devices incorporated on each die, process control monitors or pad structures thereof, devices in scribe line switching, multiplexing, gating devices G01R19/25; process control with lithography, e.g. dose control, G03F7/20; structures for alignment control by optical means G03F7/70633
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

There is provided a method for evaluating an insulating film entirely provided on a conductor layer for the characteristics or dimensions thereof. A measuring member having conductor bumps arranged thereon to be connected to wires is disposed above the insulating film on the conductor layer. Then, the conductor bumps are pressed against the insulating film with a given pressing force. By applying a voltage (electric stress) between the conductor bumps and the conductor layer, the characteristics including I-V characteristic, gate leakage current, and TDDB or the dimensions including thickness are evaluated.

Claims

1. An apparatus for evaluating an insulating film provided on a conductor layer in a semiconductor substrate for characteristics or dimensions thereof, the apparatus comprising:

a measuring member having one or more conductor bumps and a wire connected to each of the conductor bumps; and

pressing-force adjusting means for adjusting a relative pressing force exerted on each of the conductor bumps and the insulating film such that the relative pressing force falls within a specified range;

wherein the conductor bumps come into contact with the insulating film when the insulating film is evaluated, and wherein a MIS structure comprising the insulating film is provided interposed between the conductor bumps and the semiconductor substrate.

2. The apparatus for evaluating an insulating film of claim 1, wherein the measuring member has a dummy bump which is not used to evaluate the insulating film for the characteristics thereof.

3. The apparatus for evaluating an insulating film of claim 2, wherein the pressing-force measuring means has a mechanism for reducing a pressure in a space between the substrate and the measuring member.

4. The apparatus for evaluating an insulating film of claim 2, wherein each of the conductor bumps is composed of a material having a lower hardness than the insulating film.

5. The apparatus for evaluating an insulating film of claim 2, wherein a size of each of the conductor bumps and the dummy bump is set such that a contact area between each of the conductor bumps and the insulating film resulting from the pressing force falls within a specified range.