For the accurate and reliable multi-port characterization of vertical interconnection array structures, this paper presents an indirect-contact probing method to obtain network parameters of Nport device-under-tests (DUTs) using an M-port (N > M) vector network analyzer (VNA) with a dielectric contactor. By utilizing the dielectric contactor as auxiliary loads for un-probed ports for vertical interconnections, multiple M-port sub-array network parameters can be correctly synthesized into the Nport network parameters through the renormalization processes. To verify the proposed method, four-port DUTs for packaging and microwave applications were characterized with two-port indirect-contact probing sub-array simulations including the dielectric contactor. Compared with two-port direct-contact probing simulations without the dielectric contactor, it was confirmed that the proposed method with the dielectric contactor provides improved accuracy in terms of the feature selective validation (FSV) method.
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.