Use of golden samples for the assessment of the quality and reproducibility of scanning acoustic microscopy images of electronics samples

Abstract Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM) is a widely used technology for non-destructive failure analysis in electronics samples. The primary information generated by SAM is a grey scale image, which is the basis for the interpretation by the failure analysis engineer. The quality of this primary image depends, amongst others, on the system setup by the operator and on the selected transducer. Therefore, if SAM analyses of a given sample are performed by several engineers using different types of SAM systems, then in general the obtained images differ. In the present study we introduce specifically manufactured golden samples with single or stacked dice including known defects for assessing the image quality and reproducibility of SAM images. These golden samples represent a robust measurement standard. They are particularly suited for studying and then minimizing differences in SAM image quality obtained by different operators and/or different types of SAM measurement equipment. Ultimately, they will allow to homogenize the SAM image quality on different kinds of typical standard samples on a high level, and thus contribute to reliable failure identification independently of the specific operator or measurement system.