News | September 27, 2024

Kioxia And MoDeCH Develop A Three-Dimensional Probing System

Tokyo ( BUSINESS WIRE ) - Kioxia Corporation , a world leader in memory solutions, and MoDeCH Inc., a leader in modeling and design technology development, announced the development of an industry-first probing system for high-frequency feature measurement for three-dimensional (3D) objects up to 110 GHz at the European Microwave Conference (EuMC) held on September 26, 2019 .

Typically, solid-state drives (SSDs) in data centers are inserted into high-speed interface connectors on processor motherboards. In this situation, the transmission lines for high-speed interfaces such as PCIe® adopt a 3D structure that extends from the processor motherboards to the printed circuit boards (PCBs) on the SSDs via orthogonal card edge connectors (Figure 1). The high-frequency characteristics of these 3D structures are typically evaluated by simulations. With the new 3D probing system, it is now possible for the first time to directly measure the characteristics of 3D structures up to 110 GHz.

Kioxia and MoDeCH have developed a 3D probe station to measure the high-frequency features of 3D structure (Figure 2). The station incorporates an integrated mechanism that rotates the high-frequency probes and frequency extenders together, making contact with a 3D structure to measure it.

In addition, companies have developed standards for individual 3D structures (Figure 3) for the accurate measurement of high-frequency characteristics. To evaluate a vertically folded 3D structure, a passage was created in a flexible substrate that was then folded vertically using a jig and clamped in place to create a standard passage.

Using the developed 3D probing system and the standard pass-through for the 3D structure, the new 3D probing system successfully measured the high-frequency characteristics of two transmission lines up to 110 GHz on the two PCBs that were connected using the orthogonal connector (Figure 4).

This pioneering advancement in the sector is the result of the “Research and Development Project on Enhanced Infrastructure for Post-5G Information and Communication Systems” (JPNP 20017), commissioned by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).

Notes
1. Y. Sakuraba et al., “A 110-GHz Probing System for S-parameter Measurements of Three-Dimensional Objects”, European Microwave Conference 2024 (EuMC 2024), EuMC46-4
The images used in this press release are from this thesis.

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About MoDeCH
MoDeCH is a developer of modeling and design technology for the electronics industry. The company provides electronic component modeling, semiconductor and passive device modeling, circuit design support and analysis, and measurement software development, helping companies digitalize their manufacturing services.

About Kioxia
Kioxia is a world leader in memory solutions, dedicated to the development, manufacture and sale of flash memory and solid-state drives (SSD). In April 2017, its predecessor Toshiba Memory was spun off from Toshiba Corporation, the company that invented NAND flash memory in 1987. Kioxia is committed to improving the world with memory by providing products, services and systems that create choice for customers and memory-based value for society. Kioxia’s breakthrough 3D flash memory technology, called BiCS FLASH™, is shaping the future of storage in high-density applications including advanced smartphones, PCs, SSDs, automotive and data centers.

The original language text of this announcement is the official, authoritative version. Translations are provided as a convenience only and must refer to the original language text, which is the only version of the text that has legal effect.

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