Fabrication and Characterization of Silicon Probe Tip for Vertical Probe Card Using MEMS Technology

Fabrication and Characterization of Silicon Probe Tip for Vertical Probe Card Using MEMS Technology

This paper presents a silicon probe tip for vertical probe card application. The silicon probe tip was fabricated using MEMS technology such as porous silicon micromachining and deep- RIE (reactive ion etching). The thickness of the silicon epitaxial layers was 5 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$ and 7 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$, respectively. The width and length were 40 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$ and 600 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$, respectively. The probe structure was a multilayered structure and was composed of Au/Ni-Cr/Si$_3$N$_4$/n-epi layers. The height of the curled probe tip was measured as a function of the annealing temperature and time. Resistance characteristics of the probe tip were measured using a touchdown test.