Electron beam prober

The electron beam prober (e-beam prober) is a specialized adaption of a standard scanning electron microscope (SEM) that is used for semiconductor failure analysis. While a standard SEM may be operated in a voltage range of 25–30 eV, the e-beam Prober typically operates at 1 keV. The e-beam prober is capable of measuring voltage and timing waveforms on internal semiconductor signal structures. Waveforms may be measured on metal line, polysilicon and diffusion structures that have an electrically active, changing signal. The operation of the prober is similar to that of a sampling oscilloscope. A continuously looping, repeating test pattern must be applied to the device-under-test (DUT). E-beam probers are used primarily for front side semiconductor analysis. With the advent of flip-chip technology, many e-beam probers have been replaced with back side analysis instruments.