Method and apparatus for testing an electrically conductive substrate

Abstract

The method includes a step of contacting a surface of a sensing material to a surface of a substrate to form a mutual contact area between at least a portion of the surface of the sensing material and at least a portion of the surface of the substrate. The method also includes applying a first test signal to an electrode electrically connected to a component on the substrate. The method further includes illuminating the sensing material. The method also has a step of detecting light that has interacted with the sensing material to determine any changes induced in the sensing material by defects in the substrate manifest by applying the first test signal to the electrode. In an apparatus embodiment, a deformable sensing head is disclosed. The sensing head can be sensitive to voltage and heat changes on the substrate plate under test. In a preferred embodiment, the deformable sensing head has inflatable sensing material. The invention should have particular use in testing liquid crystal display panels.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.