International Business Machines Corporation

Yuet-Ying Yu

Paul F Bodenweber

William Louis Brodsky

Brian Samuel Beaman

Mark Kenneth Hoffmeyer

Enrico A Romano

Brian E Hanrahan

Mark Delorman Schultz

John Peter Karidis

John G Torok

Jeffrey Allen Zitz

Noah B Singer

Charles Hampton Perry

Gerard McVicker

Shawn Canfield

Michael Philip Goldowsky

Ryan Elsasser

Charles J Hendricks

Oswald J Mantilla

Terence W Spoor

Ralph Richard Comulada, Jr

Steven J James

David Clifford Long

Robert K Mullady

Thomas Weiss

Edward John Yarmchuk

Sarah K Czaplewski-Campbell

John Lee Colbert

Theron Lee Lewis

Roger Duane Hamilton

Mukta S Farooq

Daniel George Berger

Jason R Eagle

Jiann-Chang Lo

Michael E Scaman

Harvey Charles Hamel

Robert P Westerfield, Jr

Peter Stevens Locke

Scott Ira Langenthal

Jason Scott Miller

James Edward Fluegel

Vincent P Peterson

Kathleen M Wiley

Philo B Hodge

Ralph R Comulada

Robert N Wiggin

Camille Proietti Bowne

Frank C Seelmann

Robert Charles Polacco

James Edward Boyette, Jr

Disclosed herein is a method for producing a land grid array (LGA) socket connector assembly and the resultant assembly. The method comprises providing a carrier having a first carrier thickness with an array of vias, each having a first diameter, providing pockets around top surfaces of the vias, each having a second diameter and creating a portion of the pockets having a second carrier thickness that is less than the first carrier thickness, providing socket contact springs, each comprising a hole support structure that supports the socket contact spring within the via, and a contact beam configured to contact a conductor of an integrated circuit to be placed within the socket connector assembly, wherein a portion of carrier having a first carrier thickness is configured to prevent the contact beam from inelastically deforming when bent under load. Alternately, a contact feature may be used to prevent the inelastic deformation.

Standoff and support structures for reliable land grid array and hybrid land grid array interconnects

An electronic assembly is provided. The electronic assembly may include an electronic module mounted to a laminate, a cooling apparatus directly above the module, a single thermal interface material positioned between and directly contacting the module and the cooling apparatus, and a rotating cover rotatably attached to a top frame secured to the laminate, wherein the rotating cover includes an open position and a closed position.

Rotating lid for module cooler

An electronic module assembly is provided. The electronic module assembly may include one or more processors mounted to a laminate, a top frame mounted to the laminate and surrounding the one or more processors, and a removable lid covering the one or more processors. The removable lid includes latches arranged along a perimeter of the removable lid, the latches engage with a lip of the top frame and secure the removable lid to the module assembly, and the removable lid can only be removed from the module assembly by releasing all of the latches.

Temporary removable module lid

A method of mounting a module to a land grid array is provided. The method includes installing a tool to a fixture. The tool includes at least one alignment member and at least one cavity partially defined by the at least one alignment member. The at least one cavity of the tool is aligned with one or more corresponding sockets of the land grid array. The method further includes installing a module through the cavity such that the module is substantially aligned with the socket as it is connected to the land grid array.

Method of mounting a module to a land grid array (LGA)

An interposer comprises a metal-plated via that spans the depth of a printed circuit board. The interposer also comprises a metal plug inserted into a first end of the metal-plated via. The metal plug is attached to the metal-plated via. The metal plug may take the form of a solid plug or a sintered via plug. The interposer also comprises a solder ball soldered to the metal plug.

Efficient placement of grid array components

A module installation assembly for installing a module into a socket of a land grid array includes a tool having a mounting bracket for connecting the tool to an adjacent fixture, an alignment member connected to the mounting bracket, and cavity defined at least partially by the alignment member. The cavity is substantially aligned with a socket of the land grid array such that the module is configured to pass through the cavity when being connected to the socket.

Module installation alignment device

A module placement apparatus is provided and includes alignment brackets and a module placement tool. The alignment brackets include first guidance features, define an interior and are disposable aside an array of contacts. The module placement tool is insertible into the interior in first and second stages and includes a frame, a module gripping element operably supported on the frame, second guidance features engageable with the first guidance features at a conclusion of the first stage to maintain a relative orientation of the array of contacts and the frame during the second stage, and a gimbaled handle coupled to the module gripping element to maintain the relative orientation during the first stage until at least first and second guidance feature engagement.

Module placement apparatus

An apparatus is disclosed for aligning socket housing segments for an area array device. Each socket housing segment includes at least a first surface and a second surface, with the second surface opposite the first surface. The second surface of each socket housing segment provides electrical connections for a portion of the area array device. Socket contact pads are disposed on the first surfaces of the plurality of socket housing segments. The socket contact pads correspond to substrate contact pads disposed on a substrate. One or more alignment structures are disposed at a space between the socket housing segments. Each alignment structure is coupled to at least two of the socket housing segments. The one or more alignment structures maintain a predetermined alignment of each socket housing segment so that the socket contact pads align with the substrate contact pads during a surface mount connection process.

Alignment structure having a frame structure and bridging connections to couple and align segments of a socket housing

A self-aligning socket for an integrated circuit package includes an outer frame and an array of contacts configured for alignment with corresponding conductive pads on the bottom of the integrated circuit package. The outer frame further includes a first plurality of alignment ball bearings configured thereon, the ball bearings mounted on cantilevered spring rods.

Apparatus for implementing a self-centering land grid array socket

A system and method for utilizing a multi-probe tester to test an electrical device having a plurality of contact pads. Multi-probe tester test probes and electrical device contact pads are arrayed in a common distribution pitch, wherein at least one test probe is masked, thereby preventing the at least one test probe from returning a test result to the testing apparatus. In one embodiment mask membrane physically prevents at least one test probe from making contact with the electrical device. In another embodiment at least one software command is provided configured to cause an input from at least one test probe to be disregarded during a test routine. Another embodiment features both mask membrane and software command probe masking.

Method and system for testing multi-chip integrated circuit modules

An electrodeposition apparatus for depositing material on a surface of a substrate. The electrodeposition apparatus includes at least one contact for vertically contacting the substrate and providing electrical connection to the substrate. The at least one contact does not scratch the surface of the substrate to be plated. A voltage source is connected to the at least one contact.

Electroplating apparatus with vertical electrical contact

A self scrubbing buckling beam contactor for contacting an array of pads positioned on a device under test is described. The contactor consists of three insulating dies: a top, an offset and a lower die separated from each other by an insulated spacer of variable thickness. Each die is provided with holes. The buckling beam has an array of flexible wires positioned substantially perpendicular to the dies, each of the flexible wires crossing a corresponding hole in each of the top, offset and lower dies to allow each wire respectively contact a pad of the device under test. By shifting the center of the hole of the lower die relative to the center of the offset die, the tip of the wire exits from the lower die at an angle with respect to the plane formed by the pads of the device under test. The exit angle of the wire tip is controlled by the relative displacement of the offset die relative to the bottom die, such that the exit angle of the tip of the wire at the bottom die changes when the probe wire is under compression. By applying a reciprocating motion to the tip of the wire contacting the surface of the device under test, a scrubbing motion is achieved that lowers the resistance between the pad of the device under test. In this manner, the tip of the wire cleans the surface of the pads and prevents contaminants from adhering to the tip of the wire.

Self-scrub buckling beam probe

Disclosed is an improved probe housing mechanism that will allow for the quick release of a probe tip from a testing tool. The invention includes a probe housing, a double cantilevered beam for holding a probe tip, and a releasable spring mechanism for holding the beam into place. The spring mechanism can be released by squeezing the spring together or by releasing a non-removable locking screw, thereby allowing the beam to be slidably removed from the probe housing for easy replacement.

Electrical test tool having easily replaceable electrical probe

A bed-of-nails type or needle-card type test probe has clusters of parallel buckling beams arranged in a spaced arrangement. The buckling beams are arranged and electrically connected within a cluster so that a contaminant, which may be on the device being tested, does not reduce the accuracy of the test measurements. In particular, the spacing of the buckling beams is such that multiple buckling beams are capable of contacting a single feature on an electronics package to be tested. The buckling beams deflect independently of each other in response to compressive force, and the buckling beams within a cluster are electrically connected in parallel to each other to define redundant, independent conductive paths through the buckling beams. In this way, if a contaminant prevents one of the buckling beams of the cluster from making electrical contact with the feature to be tested, the other one or more of the buckling beams of the cluster will make the required electrical connection.

Contamination-tolerant electrical test probe

A buckling beam probe assembly and a process to make the assembly using insulated metal to hold the vertical beam probe wires. The buckling beam probe assembly electrically connects a test apparatus with contact pads on the surface of a device to be tested. The assembly is formed with a plurality of buckling beam wires each having a head, a body, and a tail. Each of the beam wires is pressed vertically onto the contact pads and buckles laterally to adapt to height differences of the contact pads caused by irregularities on the surface of the device to be tested. A top plate has a first plurality of apertures receiving the heads of the plurality of buckling beam wires. A bottom plate has a second plurality of apertures receiving the tails of the plurality of buckling beams wires. A plurality of intermediate metal sections are positioned between the top plate and the bottom plate. Each of the intermediate metal sections is formed with a plurality of thin metal layers and has a plurality of openings coated with an insulation layer. The bodies of the plurality of buckling beam wires pass through the openings.

Metal buckling beam probe

Growing community of inventors

Hopewell Junction, NY, United States of America

Yuet-Ying Yu