BENJAMIN NILES ELDRIDGE
Pilots at Sheri Ln, Danville, CA

7930219, Apr 19, 2011

Sep 22, 2009

12/564799

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Mark W. Brandemuehl - Mountain View CA, US
Stefan Graef - Milpitas CA, US
Yves Parent - San Francisco CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

G06Q 30/00

705 26, 700 96, 700 97, 700117, 700180, 324761, 709203

A method and system for designing a probe card from data provided by prospective customers via the Internet is provided. Design specifications are entered into the system by prospective customers and compiled into a database. The collective feasibility of each set of design specifications is determined by an automated computer system and communicated to the prospective customer. If feasible, additional software enables prospective customers to create verification packages according to their respective design specifications. These verification packages further consist of drawing files visually describing the final design and verification files confirming wafer bonding pad data. Verification packages are reviewed and forwarded to an applications engineer after customer approval. An interactive simulation of probe card performance is also provided. Data on probe card performance is incorporated into an overall modeling exercise, which includes not only the probe card, but data on the device(s) under test and wafer, as well as data on automated test equipment.

7845072, Dec 7, 2010

Dec 23, 2008

12/343260

Eric D. Hobbs - Livermore CA, US
Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Lunyu Ma - San Jose CA, US
Gaetan L. Mathieu - Varennes CA, US
Steven T. Murphy - Rio Vista CA, US
Makarand S. Shinde - Livermore CA, US
Alexander H. Slocum - Bow NH, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

H05K 3/30

29834, 29831, 29832, 29842, 324754, 324755, 324756, 324757, 324758, 324762

A probe card assembly comprises multiple probe substrates attached to a mounting assembly. Each probe substrate includes a set of probes, and together, the sets of probes on each probe substrate compose an array of probes for contacting a device to be tested. Adjustment mechanisms are configured to impart forces to each probe substrate to move individually each substrate with respect to the mounting assembly. The adjustment mechanisms may translate each probe substrate in an “x,” “y,” and/or “z” direction and may further rotate each probe substrate about any one or more of the forgoing directions. The adjustment mechanisms may further change a shape of one or more of the probe substrates. The probes can thus be aligned and/or planarized with respect to contacts on the device to be tested.

8354855, Jan 15, 2013

Dec 7, 2009

12/632428

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Treliant Fang - Dublin CA, US
Gaetan L. Mathieu - Varennes CA, US
Onnik Yaglioglu - Oakland CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

G01R 31/00, G01R 31/20, G01R 1/067

32475603, 32475501, 32475401

Carbon nanotube columns each comprising carbon nanotubes can be utilized as electrically conductive contact probes. The columns can be grown, and parameters of a process for growing the columns can be varied while the columns grow to vary mechanical characteristics of the columns along the growth length of the columns. Metal can then be deposited inside and/or on the outside of the columns, which can enhance the electrical conductivity of the columns. The metalized columns can be coupled to terminals of a wiring substrate. Contact tips can be formed at or attached to ends of the columns. The wiring substrate can be combined with other electronic components to form an electrical apparatus in which the carbon nanotube columns can function as contact probes.

7618281, Nov 17, 2009

Jan 30, 2007

11/669068

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

G01R 31/02

439482

Interconnect assemblies and methods for forming and using them. In one example of the invention, an interconnect assembly comprises a substrate, a resilient contact element and a stop structure. The resilient contact element is disposed on the substrate and has at least a portion thereof which is capable of moving to a first position, which is defined by the stop structure, in which the resilient contact element is in mechanical and electrical contact with another contact element. In another example of the invention, a stop structure is disposed on a first substrate with a first contact element, and this stop structure defines a first position of a resilient contact element, disposed on a second substrate, in which the resilient contact element is in mechanical and electrical contact with the first contact element. Other aspects of the invention include methods of forming the stop structure and using the structure to perform testing of integrated circuits, including for example a semiconductor wafer of integrated circuits.

7675301, Mar 9, 2010

Jul 17, 2007

11/779183

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Stuart W. Wenzel - San Francisco CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

G01R 31/26

324754, 324762

An electronic component is disclosed, having a plurality of microelectronic spring contacts mounted to a planar face of the component. Each of the microelectronic spring contacts has a contoured beam, which may be formed of an integral layer of resilient material deposited over a contoured sacrificial substrate, and comprises a base mounted to the planar face of the component, a beam connected to the base at a first end of the beam, and a tip positioned at a free end of the beam opposite to the base. The beam has an unsupported span between its free end and its base. The microelectronic spring contacts are advantageously formed by depositing a resilient material over a molded, sacrificial substrate. The spring contacts may be provided with various innovative contoured shapes. In various embodiments of the invention, the electronic component comprises a semiconductor die, a semiconductor wafer, a LGA socket, an interposer, or a test head assembly.

2001000, Jul 26, 2001

Jan 29, 2001

09/771163

Jimmy Chen - Pleasanton CA, US
Benjamin Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Thomas Dozier - Livermore CA, US
Junjye Yeh - Livermore CA, US
Gayle Herman - Danville CA, US

B32B015/02, C25D001/08, C25D005/50, C25D007/12, C25D003/02, C25D003/10, C25D003/12, C25D003/20, C25D003/38, C25D003/48

428/607000, 428/933000, 428/929000, 439/886000, 200/266000, 200/267000, 205/150000, 205/075000, 205/274000, 205/271000, 205/270000, 205/264000, 205/265000, 205/291000, 205/296000, 205/290000, 205/283000, 205/266000, 205/267000, 205/269000, 205/261000, 205/236000, 205/255000, 205/260000, 205/257000, 205/238000, 205/224000

Deposition of metal in a preferred shape, including coatings on parts, or stand-alone materials, and subsequent heat treatment to provide improved mechanical properties. In particular, the method gives products with relatively high yield strength. The products often have relatively high elastic modulus, and are thermally stable, maintaining the high yield strength at temperatures considerably above 25° C. This technique involves depositing a material in the presence of a selected additive, and then subjecting the deposited material to a moderate heat treatment. This moderate heat treatment differs from other commonly employed “stress relief” heat treatments in using lower temperatures and/or shorter times, preferably just enough to reorganize the material to the new, desired form. Coating and heat treating a spring-shaped substrate provides a resilient, conductive contact useful for electronic applications.

6043563, Mar 28, 2000

Oct 20, 1997

8/955001

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA
Igor Y. Khandros - Orinda CA
Gaetan L. Mathieu - Livermore CA
David V. Pedersen - Scotts Valley CA

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

H01L 2348, H01L 2352, H01L 2940

257784

Spring contact elements are fabricated at areas on an electronic component remote from terminals to which they are electrically connected. For example, the spring contact elements may be mounted to remote regions such as distal ends of extended tails (conductive lines) which extend from a terminal of an electronic component to positions which are remote from the terminals. In this manner, a plurality of substantially identical spring contact elements can be mounted to the component so that their free (distal) ends are disposed in a pattern and at positions which are spatially-translated from the pattern of the terminals on the component. The spring contact elements include, but are not limited to, composite interconnection elements and plated-up structures. The electronic component includes, but is not limited to, a semiconductor device, a memory chip, a portion of a semiconductor wafer, a space transformer, a probe card, a chip carrier, and a socket.

7948252, May 24, 2011

Jul 15, 2008

12/173695

Gary W. Grube - Pleasanton CA, US
Igor Y. Khandros - Orinda CA, US
Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Gaetan L. Mathieu - Livermore CA, US
Poya Lotfizadeh - San Francisco CA, US
Chih-Chiang Tseng - Dublin CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

G01R 31/02

324754, 324765

A method of designing and manufacturing a probe card assembly includes prefabricating one or more elements of the probe card assembly to one or more predefined designs. Thereafter, design data regarding a newly designed semiconductor device is received along with data describing the tester and testing algorithms to be used to test the semiconductor device. Using the received data, one or more of the prefabricated elements is selected. Again using the received data, one or more of the selected prefabricated elements is customized. The probe card assembly is then built using the selected and customized elements.

7841863, Nov 30, 2010

Jun 30, 2009

12/495405

Gaetan L. Mathieu - Varennes, CA
Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
Gary W. Grube - Pleasanton CA, US
Richard A. Larder - Livermore CA, US

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

H01R 12/00

439 66

An interconnection element of a spring (body) including a first resilient element with a first contact region and a second contact region and a first securing region and a second resilient element, with a third contact region and a second securing region. The second resilient element is coupled to the first resilient element through respective securing regions and positioned such that upon sufficient displacement of the first contact region toward the second resilient element, the second contact region will contact the third contact region. The interconnection, in one aspect, is of a size suitable for directly contacting a semiconductor device. A large substrate with a plurality of such interconnection elements can be used as a wafer-level contactor. The interconnection element, in another aspect, is of a size suitable for contacting a packaged semiconductor device, such as in an LGA package.

7731503, Jun 8, 2010

Aug 21, 2006

11/466039

Benjamin N. Eldridge - Danville CA, US
John K. Gritters - Livermore CA, US
Igor Y. Khandros - Orinda CA, US
Rod Martens - Livermore CA, US
Gaetan L. Mathieu - Varennes, CA

FormFactor, Inc. - Livermore CA

H01R 12/00

439 66, 439887

A carbon nanotube contact structure can be used for making pressure connections to a DUT. The contact structure can be formed using a carbon nanotube film or with carbon nanotubes in solution. The carbon nanotube film can be grown in a trench in a sacrificial substrate in which a contact structure such as a beam or contact element is then formed by metal plating. The film can also be formed on a contact element and have metal posts dispersed therein to provide rigidity and elasticity. Contact structures or portions thereof can also be plated with a solution containing carbon nanotubes. The resulting contact structure can be tough, and can provide good electrical conductivity.