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In-circuit Testing of Complex Circuits Using On-wafer Probing and Electromagnetic Coupled Ground Interconnects
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Kassner, Jurgen Menzel, Wolfgang |
| Copyright Year | 2008 |
| Abstract | With increasing complexity, testing of the different functions of integrated microwave and mm-wave circuits gets increasingly difficult. A method is presented to perform incircuit testing of different circuits and components either on a common substrate or on different substrates on a common carrier. Stubs are used to provide RF ground for onwafer testing. Between the circuits on a common substrate, gaps are introduced which are closed by bond ribbons after testing. The method is tested at the examples of the combination of microstrip lines one GaAs and alumina and of the combination of a low and a high pass filter on a common substrate. INTRODUCTION Modern microwave and mm-wave circuits and front-ends are getting increasingly complex, consisting of a plurality of different functions realized as a combination of MMICs and hybrid integrated circuits. MMICs mostly are designed and extensively evaluated for fabrication in large quantities and tested separately on-wafer, but complex hybrid circuits including passive structures, maybe some active components, and the transitions to the MMICs and the outside "world" often are designed individually for a certain application. To this end, it would be advantageous to be able to test the different parts of such an arrangement either separately, but already mounted on a carrier, or with all structures already fabricated on a single substrate, i.e. to enable an "in-circuit" testing. Such a technique requires an initial separation of the different structures on the substrate, and using microstrip circuits, the realization of ground interconnects in the inner parts of the circuitry. Furthermore, if MIMICs are placed side by side with an alumina substrate, test points are required at the edge of the substrate. Using via holes for this purpose, problems may arise separating the different alumina substrates after fabrication. IN-CIRCUIT TEST STRUCTURE A few years ago, on-wafer testing without via holes has been demonstrated [1]. This technique now is used to provide the necessary ground interconnects at the edge of or within a hybrid circuit, favorably at higher microwave or mmwave frequencies. If test points are required in the inner part of a substrate, the interconnect lines are interrupted at the required test points by a narrow gap, and small stubs are added to both sides and both ends of the lines as shown in the example circuit given in Fig. 1. Low pass filter High pass filter Via-Hole In-circuit on-wafer test points |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://oparu.uni-ulm.de/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/961/vts_6198_8326.pdf?isAllowed=y&sequence=1 |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
