The production of electronic devices has come a long way. The average smartphone right now is more than ten times smaller than the first computer, yet it has it can perform most of the functions it did, if not more. This change is made possible not in a small part by the migration from using vacuum tubes to using transistors. You can now build hundreds or even millions of transistors, diodes, capacitors, and resistors onto a small piece of a semiconductor. These semiconductors, called wafers in the founders’ manufacturing process, are diced into individual units of circuits called die in the packaging process.
The die (Integrated circuit chips) are encapsulated into chip carriers, which will be assembled onto consumer products or motherboards. Before this assembly, however, packaging companies procure the services of a testing company. These companies make test sockets. A test socket is used to test the chips in the chip carries to ensure they are operational. The test sockets are manufactured using specific instructions to meet the packaging parameters of the chip carriers. Some of these parameters include the number, type, and pitch of the pins and the packaging type, thickness, and dimensions.
Some socket types include:
- WLCSP (wafer-level chip-scale packages) socket also called the probe head. This test socket is ideal for wafer-level testing. It is cost-effective, and you can use it for all small and specific tests on your wafer. Pick this product for high-precision testing.
- RF sockets – These sockets are made to work at high radio frequencies. They can provide high impedance and bandwidth matching. They should be electrically transparent so that their presence does not affect the test results. You can pick a socket designed explicitly for a package type/size, or you can choose one which adapts to multiple packages or sizes by use of an adapter type feature.
- Kelvin socket – This test socket provides a low and stable contact resistance, an extended temperature range, and a high current carrying capability. These sockets are designed to reduce the cost of testing. This is because of enhanced production reliability, a boosted first pass yield, improved OEE, and extended maintenance intervals. It promises high-quality testing at low costs.
- PoP socket – PoP stands for package on package. It is a packaging method that combines discrete integrated circuit packages, one atop the other with a standard interface. A PoP socket is capable of testing logic packages separately from memory packages. It can also test packages that have been combined vertically.
- CMOS Sensor Sockets – CMOS stands for Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor. These sockets can convert light into electrons. They test conductors found in digital cameras. They allow for the testing of the cameras’ reaction to light and the final image quality. Whether you are designing the digital camera for personal or professional use, this is the socket to use
IC circuits are being applied in many industries, such as the automotive industry, the electrical devices manufacturing industry, and others. There is a need for quality test sockets. You can obtain them from companies like tts group that specialize in the production of test sockets.