Stack including inspection circuit, inspection method and inspection apparatus

An inspection method for inspecting states of electric connections in first and second wiring structures of a stack,

• the stack having
• a semiconductor substrate,
• the first wiring structure for electrically connecting a first electrode exposed on the front surface of the stack and a first terminal located in the stack, and
• the second wiring structure for electrically connecting a second electrode exposed on the front surface of the stack and a second terminal located in the stack,
• the method comprising:
• forming in the stack an inspection circuit which includes a switching circuit having an input terminal electrically connected with the first terminal, a drive terminal electrically connected with the second terminal, and an output terminal electrically connected with a discharge mechanism so that the inspection circuit is configured such that in a state where a first electric connection is made in the first wiring structure and a second electric connection is made in the second wiring structure, at the time of applying charges to the first and second electrodes, the charge applied to the second electrode flows to the drive terminal through the second wiring structure to bring the input terminal and the output terminal of the switching circuit into an electrically conducted state, and the charge applied to the first electrode flows to the discharge mechanism through the first wiring structure and the switching circuit;
• applying the charges to the first and second electrodes by use of an electronic probe of a scanning electron microscope, to activate the inspection circuit according to the states of electric connections in the first and second wiring structures;
• and
• observing a charged state of the first electrode by use of the scanning electron microscope.

An inspection apparatus that inspects a semiconductor device, comprising:

• a chamber for storing a semiconductor device provided with electrodes;
• a stage, on which the semiconductor device provided inside the chamber is installed;
• an electronic probe that has a predetermined irradiation range, and serves to apply a charge to the electrodes located within the predetermined irradiation range;
• and
• an image acquiring section that acquires an image showing a charged state of the electrode in a range at least including the predetermined irradiation range,
• wherein the irradiation range of the electronic probe can be controlled independently of the range of the image.