Abstract: A porogen material for forming a dielectric porous film. The porogen material may include a silicon based dielectric precursor and a silicon containing porogen. The porous film may have a substantially uniform dielectric constant value throughout. Methods of forming the porous film as well as semiconductor devices employing circuit features isolated by the porous film are also present.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for manufacturing at least one phase change memory cell. The method at least fabricating at least one first lamellar spacer of conductive material, which is electrically coupled to the PCM material of the memory cell; fabricating at least one second lamellar spacer on top of the first lamellar spacer, wherein the second lamellar spacer crosses the first lamellar spacer in the area of the PCM material; partially removing the first lamellar spacer, wherein the second lamellar spacer serves as a hardmask for partially removing the first lamellar spacer, so that the first lamellar spacer forms at least one electrode contacting an area of PCM material.

Abstract: A 3-dimensional PCM structure and method for using the same for carrying out 3-dimensional integrated circuit wiring electrical testing and failure analysis in an integrated circuit manufacturing process, the method including forming a first metallization layer; carrying out a first wafer acceptance testing (WAT) process to test the electrical continuity of the first metallization layer; forming first metal vias on the first metallization layer conductive portions and a second metallization layer comprising metal islands on the first metal vias wherein the metal islands electrically communicate with the first metallization layer to form a process control monitor (PCM) structure; and, carrying out a second WAT process to test the electrical continuity of the first metallization layer.

Abstract: An overlay mark includes at least one hole array formed on a semiconductor substrate and at least one linear trench adjacent to the hole array. The hole array may be formed adjacent to the linear trench along a predetermined direction. When alignment errors among patterns formed at predetermined portion of the semiconductor substrate are detected, the overlay mark may provide a contrast of light with a desired width and a high level so that alignment errors of patterns formed on the semiconductor substrate may be accurately detected and corrected using the overlay mark.

Abstract: A conductive member having a first face adapted to be mounted on a board on which an inspection circuit is arranged, and a second face adapted to be opposed to a device to be inspected is prepared. The conductive member is formed with a first through hole having a first diameter and communicating the first face with the second face. A contact probe including a tubular body having a second diameter which is smaller than the first diameter, and a plunger retractably projected from one end portion of the tubular body is prepared and disposed in the first through hole. A conductive plate having a second through hole is prepared. Molten resin is injected into the second through hole such that at least a part of inner face of the second through hole is covered with solidified resin, thereby forming a third through hole. The conductive plate is disposed so as to oppose to the second face of the conductive member and to communicate the third through hole with the first through hole.

Abstract: A resistance defect assessment device provided on a wafer for assessing a resistance variation defect in a component of an integrated circuit device, the resistance defect assessment device including test patterns capable of measuring a resistance variation component to be the resistance variation defect in each chip area or each shot area of the wafer, wherein the number of test patterns included in one chip area or one shot area is set so that it is possible to estimate the yield of the integrated circuit device.

Abstract: The present invention addresses detection of charge-induced defects through test structures that can be easily incorporated on a wafer to detect charge-induced damage in the back-end-of-line processing of a semiconductor processing line. A test macro is designed to induce an arc from a charge accumulating antenna structure to another charge accumulating antenna structure across parallel plate electrodes. When an arc of a predetermined sufficient strength is present, the macro will experience a voltage breakdown that is measurable as a short. The parallel plate electrodes may both be at the floating potential of the microchip to monitor CMP-induced or lithographic-induced charge failure mechanisms, or have one electrode electrically connected to a ground potential structure to capture charge induced damage, hence having the capability to differentiate between the two.

Abstract: A metal interconnect structure formed over a substrate in an integrated circuit that traverses a scribe-line boundary between a first die and a second die includes at least one metal interconnect line that traverses the scribe-line boundary. A switch is coupled between the at least one metal interconnect line and the substrate, the switch having a control element coupled to a scribe-cut control line. The control line turns the switch on if the two dice are separated into individual dice and turns the switch off if the two dice are to remain physically connected so that the interconnect line may be used to make connections between circuits on the two dice.

Abstract: A method of inspecting a leakage current of a dielectric layer on a substrate including a cell array region having a plurality of cell blocks including a patterned structure, the dielectric layer formed on the patterned structure, and a peripheral circuit region includes depositing a corona ion charge on a cell block selected from the plurality of cell blocks and measuring a variance of a surface voltage caused by a leakage current through the dielectric layer on the selected cell block. The variance of the surface voltage is compared with reference data to determine a leakage current characteristic of the dielectric layer.

Abstract: Circuits under electrode terminals and a nonconductor layer of the electrode terminals in semiconductor devices are prevented from being damaged during a test, such as a burn-in test, on the semiconductor devices formed on a wafer. Alignment patterns provided on the semiconductor wafer have detector electrode terminals and conductor electrode terminals. A detector electrode terminal surrounds a conductor electrode terminal separated by a gap from the detector electrode terminals and a portion of the surrounding detector electrode terminal is open.

Abstract: A test structure and a test methodology are provided for testing metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor structures under high temperatures at the wafer level. The test structure includes a resistor formed on a region of dielectric isolation material formed in a semiconductor substrate. The MIM capacitor is formed over the resistor and separated therefrom by dielectric material. A metal thermometer, formed from the same material as the plates of the MIM capacitor, is placed above the resistor and in close proximity to the capacitor. High current is forced through the resistor, causing both the metal thermometer and the MIM capacitor to heat up along with the resistor. The change in resistance of the metal thermometer is monitored. Using the known temperature coeffecient of resistance (TCR) for the metal used to form both the capacitor and the thermometer, changes in the measured resistance of the metal thermometer are converted to temperature.

Abstract: A method of integration testing for packaged electronic components is capable of improving a conventional testing for packaged electronic components. In this method, non-tested sides of the packaged electronic components are stuck with a downward exposure onto a testing carrier board so that conductive pins are oriented to test spaces to test the plurality of packaged electronic components stuck onto the testing carrier board according to testing steps for convenient classification packaging, advanced testing efficiency, economical working hours and costs. Programmable features and man-hour saving are provided for easy mass production and testing.

Abstract: The present invention discloses novel methods to transfer data between a plurality of integrated circuit dice on a semiconductor wafer. Each individual die contains internal circuits to control data transfer to nearby dice. Wafer level data transfer is achieved by a series of inter-dice data transfers. It is therefore possible to use a small number of small area metal lines to support wafer level parallel processing activities. External connections are provided by a small number of bonding pads on each wafer. The load on each external bounding pad is by far lower than that of prior art wafer level connections. These inter-dice data transfer mechanism also can be programmed to avoid defective circuitry. This invention has been used to support wafer level functional tests and wafer level burn-in tests. A Testing system of the present invention can test thousands of dice in parallel using simple testing equipment. Testing costs for integrated circuits are therefore reduced dramatically.

Abstract: One embodiment relates to using a robust metal layer of a semiconductor device to form landing pads. In one embodiment, a sputterable, nonwettable refractory metal is used as a solder mask for the landing pads. A second device may then be coupled to the robust metal layer landing pads of the semiconductor device. In one embodiment, the landing pads are formed while the semiconductor device is in wafer form, and a second device is then coupled to the landing pads of each of the plurality of semiconductor devices within the wafer, such that each semiconductor device within the wafer is electrically coupled to a second device. In this manner, each semiconductor device within the wafer and its corresponding second device may be probed and tested as a system. After probing and testing, the wafer may be singulated into a plurality of individual device assemblies which may then be packaged.

Abstract: A method of protecting a bond pad during die-sawing comprising the following steps. A substrate having a bond pad formed thereover is provided. A bond pad protection layer is formed over the bond pad. The substrate is die-sawed and the bond pad protection layer is removed by heating.

Abstract: Testing the production of semiconductor elements on a substrate, the semiconductor elements having a plurality of cell types, by providing at least one test structure on the substrate with a number of test cells having cell types similar to one or more of the plurality of cell types, each of the cell types having at least a first and a second local interconnect layer structure to be connected to predetermined supply voltages during use, a plurality of first and second polysilicon layer structures to provide control voltages to first and second electronic component structures, respectively, connecting in the test structure all of the plurality of first polysilicon layer structures to one another to provide an interconnected first polysilicon layer structure, and connecting in the test structure all of the plurality of second polysilicon layer structures to one another to provide an interconnected second polysilicon layer structure, providing predetermined test voltages and measuring currents resulting from the

Abstract: The present invention includes a method and apparatus for measuring a parasitic inductance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit fabricated on a semiconductor substrate. A test chip for measuring the parasitic inductance is fabricated together with the integrated circuit on the semiconductor substrate. The test chip includes an LC oscillator circuit having at least one substructure that resembles the portion of the integrated circuit and at least one varactor having a capacitance adjustable by a control voltage. When the LC oscillator circuit is connected to the control voltage source and the control voltage is at a certain level, an oscillation is generated in the LC oscillator and the frequency of oscillation can be used to determine the parasitic inductance associated with the portion of the integrated circuit.

Abstract: In a semiconductor integrated circuit device, testing pads (209b) using a conductive layer, such as relocation wiring layers (205) are provided just above or in the neighborhood of terminals like bonding pads (202b) used only for probe inspection at which bump electrodes (208) are not provided. Similar testing pads may be provided even with respect to terminals like bonding pads provided with bump electrodes. A probe test is executed by using these testing pads or under the combined use of under bump metallurgies antecedent to the formation of the bump electrodes together with the testing pads. According to the above, bump electrodes for pads dedicated for probe testing may not be added owing to the use of the testing pads. Further, the use of testing pads provided in the neighborhood of the terminals like the bonding pads and smaller in size than the under bump metallurgies enables a probe test to be executed after a relocation wiring process.