A jig and a method for grinding probe pins of a probe card. The jig includes a carrier and a connecting part. The carrier carries a support body with a grinding sheet, and the carrier includes an opening. The support body with the grinding sheet straddles above the opening. The opening may expose a plurality of probe pins of the probe card.

Proposed are an electrically conductive contact pin formed by stacking a plurality of metal layers and a manufacturing method therefor, in which unintentional deformation of the electrically conductive contact pin is prevented by concentrating a pressing force pressing the electrically conductive contact pin on a tip portion having a relatively small cross-sectional area.

Proposed are an electrically conductive contact pin formed by stacking a plurality of metal layers and a manufacturing method therefor, in which unintentional deformation of the electrically conductive contact pin is prevented by concentrating a pressing force pressing the electrically conductive contact pin on a tip portion having a relatively small cross-sectional area.

A probe card for a circuit probe test system and methods of fabrication thereof. The probe card includes a substrate portion, a guide plate having a plurality of openings, and a plurality of probe pins extending through the openings, including at least one first probe pin configured to carry power between the substrate portion and a device-under-test (DUT), at least one second probe pin configured to electrically couple the DUT to ground, and at least two third probe pins configured to carry loopback test signals between contact regions on the DUT. A low dielectric constant (low-k) material may be located between the third probe pins and the guide plate. The low-k material may prevent direct contact between the third probe pins and the relatively higher dielectric-constant material of the guide plate, which may improve the signal integrity (SI) of the loopback test signals.

A probe card for a circuit probe test system and methods of fabrication thereof. The probe card includes a substrate portion, a guide plate having a plurality of openings, and a plurality of probe pins extending through the openings, including at least one first probe pin configured to carry power between the substrate portion and a device-under-test (DUT), at least one second probe pin configured to electrically couple the DUT to ground, and at least two third probe pins configured to carry loopback test signals between contact regions on the DUT. A low dielectric constant (low-k) material may be located between the third probe pins and the guide plate. The low-k material may prevent direct contact between the third probe pins and the relatively higher dielectric-constant material of the guide plate, which may improve the signal integrity (SI) of the loopback test signals.

An irrigated electrophysiology catheter has a tip electrode having a shell, and a support member configured to plug the shell and support one or more tip components and/or facilitate their functions. Advantageously, the support member has an electrically-conductive interface portion and an insert-molded portion, wherein the interface portion, typically constructed of a precious metal alloy, is structurally minimized, yet still configured for electrical connection with the shell and the lead wire, so as to reduce the amount and hence the cost of its manufacture, whereas the insert-molded portion is constructed of a significantly less-costly material and is readily configured with micro-complex 3-D geometry adapted to support tip structure and functions including irrigation, force sensing and temperature sensing, as a further cost savings in the manufacturing of the tip electrode by reducing materials, labor and time.

An irrigated electrophysiology catheter has a tip electrode having a shell, and a support member configured to plug the shell and support one or more tip components and/or facilitate their functions. Advantageously, the support member has an electrically-conductive interface portion and an insert-molded portion, wherein the interface portion, typically constructed of a precious metal alloy, is structurally minimized, yet still configured for electrical connection with the shell and the lead wire, so as to reduce the amount and hence the cost of its manufacture, whereas the insert-molded portion is constructed of a significantly less-costly material and is readily configured with micro-complex 3-D geometry adapted to support tip structure and functions including irrigation, force sensing and temperature sensing, as a further cost savings in the manufacturing of the tip electrode by reducing materials, labor and time.

A test socket for integrated circuit (IC) testing and a method of manufacturing the test socket are provided. The test socket includes an insulating support structure having a plurality of through holes and a plurality of elastic conductive columns. These conductive columns are partially embedded in the support structure and extend through the through holes to accommodate variations caused by IC package warpage and tolerances in BGA solder ball dimensions. The insulating support structure further includes grooves located adjacent to the through holes, which enhance the compressibility and heat dissipation capability of the test socket. The conductive columns themselves have an elastic structure, with at least a portion of their surfaces covered by an insulating material layer to prevent short circuits. The test socket also features a rigid support framemade of polyimide, PCB material, or ceramicand a soft support frame made of silicone, offering both durability and flexibility.

A test socket for integrated circuit (IC) testing and a method of manufacturing the test socket are provided. The test socket includes an insulating support structure having a plurality of through holes and a plurality of elastic conductive columns. These conductive columns are partially embedded in the support structure and extend through the through holes to accommodate variations caused by IC package warpage and tolerances in BGA solder ball dimensions. The insulating support structure further includes grooves located adjacent to the through holes, which enhance the compressibility and heat dissipation capability of the test socket. The conductive columns themselves have an elastic structure, with at least a portion of their surfaces covered by an insulating material layer to prevent short circuits. The test socket also features a rigid support framemade of polyimide, PCB material, or ceramicand a soft support frame made of silicone, offering both durability and flexibility.

An object is to provide an alignment chip for forming an alignment symbol on a wiring board of a probe card. Provided are: a substrate 51 having a pasting surface to be pasted to a probe installation surface 17 of a wiring board 14 constituting a probe card 10 via an adhesive 54; and an alignment symbol 501 made of a metal film 52 formed on a symbol surface on a side opposite to the pasting surface of the substrate 51. The symbol surface includes a symbol peripheral region 502 surrounding the alignment symbol 501, and the symbol peripheral region 502 has a lower reflectance than the alignment symbol 501.