Systems and methods for measuring physical characteristics of semiconductor device elements using structured light

US9810641B2 · US · B2

Patent metadata
FieldValue
Publication numberUS-9810641-B2
Application numberUS-201414469830-A
CountryUS
Kind codeB2
Filing dateAug 27, 2014
Priority dateSep 3, 2013
Publication dateNov 7, 2017
Grant dateNov 7, 2017

How to read this patent

A practical reading order for non-experts. Skip the full description unless you need deep technical detail.

  1. Title

    What the patent document calls the invention.

  2. Abstract

    A short plain-language summary of the technical disclosure.

  3. Assignees and inventors

    Who owns or filed the patent and who is credited as inventor.

  4. Key dates

    Filing, priority, publication, and grant dates set the timeline.

  5. First independent claim

    The legal scope of protection — read this for what is actually claimed.

  6. CPC / IPC classifications

    Technology tags used to group this patent with similar filings.

  7. Citations and related patents

    Prior art links and similar publications in this corpus.

Abstract

Official abstract text for this publication.

A method of determining a physical characteristic of an adhesive material on a semiconductor device element using structured light is provided. The method includes the steps of: (1) applying a structured light pattern to an adhesive material on a semiconductor device element; (2) creating an image of the structured light pattern using a camera; and (3) analyzing the image of the structured light pattern to determine a physical characteristic of the adhesive material. Additional methods and systems for determining physical characteristics of semiconductor devices and elements using structured light are also provided.

First claim

Opening claim text (preview).

What is claimed: 1. A thermo-compression bonding machine comprising: a bond head assembly for performing a thermo-compression bonding process; a dispenser for dispensing an adhesive material onto a first semiconductor device element; a support structure for supporting the first semiconductor device element including the adhesive material, the thermocompression bonding machine being adapted to bond a second semiconductor device element to the first semiconductor device element, the second semiconductor device element including conductive pillars configured to be thermo-compressively bonded to conductive structures of the first semiconductor device element, the adhesive material being configured to be provided between the first semiconductor device element and the second semiconductor device element; a structured light source for providing a structured light pattern on the adhesive material; a camera for creating an image of the structured light pattern on the adhesive material; and image processing hardware and software for analyzing the image to determine a physical characteristic of the adhesive material, and to determine if the physical characteristic is within a predetermined specification. 2. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the adhesive material is selected from the group consisting of an epoxy material, a non-conductive paste material, and a curable liquid material. 3. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the structured light pattern includes at least one of a parallel bar pattern and a grid pattern. 4. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the thermo-compression bonding machine is configured to adjust an aspect of dispensing of the adhesive material by the dispenser for a subsequent semiconductor device element if it is determined that the physical characteristic is not within the predetermined specification, and wherein the aspect is adjusted using a closed loop process whereby the adjusted aspect is determined automatically at least partially based on the determined physical characteristic. 5. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the physical characteristic includes at least one of a volume of the adhesive material, and a distribution of a volume of the adhesive material. 6. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the thermo-compression bonding machine is configured to adjust an aspect of dispensing of the adhesive material by the dispenser for a subsequent semiconductor device element if it is determined that the physical characteristic is not within the predetermined specification. 7. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 1 wherein the adhesive material is a fillet portion of an adhesive provided between the first semiconductor device element and the second semiconductor device element. 8. A thermo-compression bonding machine comprising: a bond head assembly for performing a thermo-compression bonding process; a support structure for supporting a first semiconductor device, the thermocompression bonding machine adapted to bond a second semiconductor device element to the first semiconductor device element, the second semiconductor device element including conductive pillars configured to be thermo-compressively bonded to conductive structures of the first semiconductor device element, the adhesive material being configured to be provided between the first semiconductor device element and the second semiconductor device element; a structured light source for providing a structured light pattern; a camera for indirectly viewing the structured light pattern using a reflective surface of the first semiconductor device element, the camera generating an image of the structured light pattern; and image processing hardware and software for analyzing the image to determine a flatness characteristic of the first semiconductor device element. 9. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 8 wherein the structured light pattern includes at least one of a parallel bar pattern and a grid pattern. 10. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 8 wherein the structured light source includes a digital fringe projector. 11. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 8 wherein the image processing hardware and software is configured to determine if the flatness characteristic is within a predetermined specification. 12. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 8 further comprising a diffuser screen for receiving the structured light pattern from the structured light source. 13. The thermo-compression bonding machine of claim 8 further comprising at least one of a pick tool and a place tool for securing the first semiconductor device element while the camera indirectly views the structured light pattern.

Assignees

Inventors

Classifications

  • Varying illumination · CPC title

  • Investigating thin films, e.g. matrix isolation method · CPC title

  • using a design-rule based approach · CPC title

  • Specially adapted optical and illumination features · CPC title

  • Shadow projection or structured background, e.g. for deflectometry · CPC title

Patent family

Related publications grouped by family.

External sources

Frequently asked questions

Answers are generated from the same data shown on this page.

What does patent US9810641B2 cover?
A method of determining a physical characteristic of an adhesive material on a semiconductor device element using structured light is provided. The method includes the steps of: (1) applying a structured light pattern to an adhesive material on a semiconductor device element; (2) creating an image of the structured light pattern using a camera; and (3) analyzing the image of the structured ligh…
Who is the assignee on this patent?
Kulicke & Soffa Ind Inc
What technology area does this patent fall under?
Primary CPC classification G01N21/9501. Mapped technology areas include Physics.
When was this patent published?
Publication date Tue Nov 07 2017 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
What related patents are in patentsdb?
We list 8 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).