UF 200 A AL

A wafer prober is semiconductor test handling equipment that brings a wafer into controlled contact with probe needles or a probe card so electrical measurements can be made on individual die before singulation. A wafer prober typically works with external test instrumentation and provides positioning, alignment, and chuck-based wafer support during probing.

A wafer prober uses a wafer chuck to hold the wafer and move it into position under a probing head or probe card. A wafer prober aligns wafer features to the probing location, establishes electrical contact, and then steps across the wafer so repeated measurements can be performed die by die.

Wafer probers sit in electrical wafer sort and related probe operations after wafer fabrication and before dicing, assembly, and final packaged test. Wafer probers connect the finished wafer to automated test equipment so die can be checked, mapped, and screened while the devices are still on the wafer.

Wafer probers are used for electrical characterization, parametric measurement, functional die test, and screening of semiconductor wafers. Wafer probers are also used in engineering and failure analysis flows when devices must be contacted repeatedly under controlled positioning at wafer level.