An Alternative to High-Temperature and Acid/Solvent-Based Methods for Removing Integrated Circuits from Ceramic or Other Problem Substrates

Dice must often be removed from their packages and reassembled into more suitable packages for them to be tested in automated test equipment (ATE). Removing bare dice from their substrates using conventional methods poses risks for chemical, thermal, and/or mechanical damage. A new removal method is offered using metallography-based and parallel polishing-based techniques to remove the substrate while exposing the die to minimized risk for damage. This method has been tested and found to have a high success rate once the techniques are learned.