P 8

The SUSS P 8 is a manual probe station manufactured by SUSS MicroTec. The station is configured as a manual prober and is equipped with a Mitutoyo compound microscope. The system supports eight-inch wafer sizes.^[3][1][2][4]

A manual probe station uses a chuck to hold a wafer in place while the operator manually guides probe arms to land on specific die or test sites. The microscope provides optical alignment, and the operator uses micropositioners with fine-thread adjustments to lower probe tips until contact is made. Electrical measurements are then taken through the probes connected to an external instrument such as a parameter analyzer or curve tracer.

Manual probe stations are used in semiconductor fabrication facilities for process development, device characterization, and failure analysis after wafer fabrication is complete. The tool is not part of the front-end manufacturing line but is a test and measurement station located in a laboratory or engineering cleanroom.

Manual probe stations support DC and low-frequency parametric testing of individual devices, such as transistors, diodes, and test structures. Common applications include on-wafer IV curve tracing, threshold voltage measurement, and contact resistance testing. The manual nature of the SUSS P 8 makes it suitable for engineering evaluation, small-batch characterization, and instructional use rather than high-volume production testing.