Numerical study on the thermal fluid of multi-chip test chamber with guide vane

Abstract

This study describes a possibility for improved temperature uniformity by changing the chamber geometry using guide vane for application in test chambers. For the test chamber used in multi-chip testing, air cooling technology is commonly employed to maintain internal temperature and control the heat generated by semiconductor devices. The air cooling offers advantages such as simplicity of design and cost-effectiveness, however, it has the disadvantage of high dependence on fluid flow characteristics due to the shape of the internal space, making it prone to uneven airflow distribution at different locations. In order to perform especially package testing of semiconductor chips, it is necessary to actively control the target temperature in the test chamber to respond the rapidly changing temperature by heat generation of semiconductor chips. So, the accurate operation is request by the airflow control of test chamber in order to control the temperature of internal heat sources effectively. In this study, we conducted optimization research based on numerical analysis to improve temperature uniformity through efficient operation of airflow control of semiconductor package testing equipment. To analyze the accuracy of numerical analysis, we fabricated a test chamber identical to the analysis model and investigated the correlation between internal heat generation and fluid flow characteristics. It is anticipated that the validated methodology through numerical analysis and experimented research can provide a solution for achieving rapid response in attaining and maintaining the target temperature, which is essential for reducing semiconductor chip testing time to applied in an industrial context.