May 30, 2007 — Cascade Microtech says its new Tesla power-device characterization system is unlike any other product in that it “solves the on-wafer probing challenges for engineers and test technicians who need to characterize their power devices.”

The broad use of power semiconductors has created a pressing need to characterize devices quickly and efficiently. Tesla aims to drive gains in productivity, claiming to be the industry’s first power device measurement system providing a complete on-wafer solution for over- temperature, low contact resistance measurements up to 60A and 3000V.

“The Tesla power device measurement system will reduce costs by eliminating the hassles of packaging devices before we characterize them,” said Edouard de Fresart, power device section manager, SMARTMOS Technology Center, Freescale Semiconductor. “It will have a huge effect on our productivity by reducing the wasted time and steps we incur in packaging while still providing accurate test data.”

A high current probe reduces the potential for probe and device destruction during testing. It can support 10A of current in continuous mode and up to 60A of current in pulsed mode, and is designed to minimize contact resistance at the wafer-to-probe interface.
A high voltage probe promises to make coaxial measurements up to 3000V and triaxial measurements up to 1100V. In addition, both the high current and the high voltage probes feature a replaceable tip that is easily changed.

Further, the system’s wafer chuck promises state-of-the-art handling for thin wafers: The right amount of vacuum in a delicate method that protects against wafer breakage and probe damage, with minimal contact resistance.