Boards FAQ

Can I get a custom circuit board with OSSP connectors?
Where can I get an edge-connector for my 48- or 70-finger Pyramid Probe Card?
The AC lines are routed to "ground signal square pins" on the board. Which ground is this, and is there a specific connector that matches the pins?
I read an article in Microwave & RF that Pyramid Probe cards are mountable on standard positioners. How many positioners are needed? Is an adapter needed?

Can I get a custom circuit board with OSSP connectors?
In general, custom boards are readily accommodated. Specialized, proprietary, or expensive/hard to find connectors - like the OSSP connectors - must be supplied. 

You have three choices: 

• We can build a board to your specifications;           
• We can mechanically cut and paste a core interface board into a board you supply; or           
• We can provide you with design specifications on our board-to-core interface so that you can design and build your own board. 

Where can I get an edge-connector for my 48- or 70-finger Pyramid Probe Card?
We recommend the following connectors, available from many electronic component distributors:  

Manufacturer: EDAC Inc., Ontario, Canada, (416)754-3322           

• 48-finger: EDAC Series 305 P/N 305-048-500-202 (CMI Part No. 105-793)           
• 70-finger: EDAC Series 342 P/N 342-070-500-202 (CMI Part No. 105-791) 

The AC lines are routed to "ground signal square pins" on the board. Which ground is this, and is there a specific connector that matches the pins?

The square pins referred to are standard 0.100-inch-spacing square-pins commonly used throughout the industry for general-purpose connectors. You may have seen them used with configuration jumpers on older PC cards or motherboards, before all the configuration information went into CMOS. 

The specifics of the grounding vary somewhat with the probe board configuration. Some configurations have a ground plane; others rely on individual lines connected to ground. In either case, the probe core membrane layout normally has a common ground mesh connecting the solid grounds of all signal lines. 

I read an article in  Microwave & RF that Pyramid Probe cards are mountable on standard positioners. How many positioners are needed? Is an adapter needed?
Figure 6 of the January 1997 Microwave & RF article shows an RFC Pyramid Probe using the positioner mount configuration. The Wireless Positioner Mount Pyramid Probe board is very similar, the difference being the high-frequency connections. On the Wireless board, eight SMA connectors are directly mounted to the board and routed to the core using microstrip lines on the board. 

Two opposing positioners are used, in either E-W or N-S orientation. Since more degrees of freedom are available, setup and use are more complex.