National Conference to be held May 11-12, 2000


Technology

The design of Probe Cards has become increasingly complicated in
response to the increasing density, performance and complexity of
integrated circuits. Testing modern integrated circuits on larger wafers
with finer features at higher clock speeds demands special skills in
designing the critical Probe Card. Manufacturing and test of these
specialized interconnects have their own special criteria.


Conference

The North Texas Chapter IPC Designers Council feels that the
Semiconductor ATE industry is suffering from a shortage of skilled
designers to address this problem, which is felt acutely by the
semiconductor manufacturers in the North Texas area. The North Texas
Chapter through its commitment to its members and to the entire design
community decided to put together a conference that would help raise the
skill levels of designers and other associated industry professionals to
meet the new challenges in the Semiconductor ATE industry. The North
Texas Chapter believes that this is the first time this kind of ATE
specific conference has ever been done in the United States. They also
emphasized that the conference is not limited to members of the IPC
Designers Councils or those living in the North Texas area. “ We want
this conference to be open to all interested participants nationwide,
both designers and those in allied fields of the ever expanding
semiconductor industry here in Dallas and throughout the United States,”
stated Andy Kowalewski, President of the Chapter.


Who Should Attend

 PCB designers
 CAD Librarians
 Board fabricators
 Test managers and engineers
 Assembly technicians
 Purchasing agents
 Quality inspectors
 Sales engineers
 Applications engineers
 And More…


 Conference Highlights

 A process for rapid development of ATE boards
 How to manage  CAD libraries effectively
 The need to pay close attention to high speed signal integrity
 High speed differential signals and how to treat them
 Close attention to mechanical issues is key
 PCB materials and their relationships to final product
 Common errors and how to prevent them
 Open panel discussion by the area’s leading ATE design service bureaus
 Socket and Adaptor Concepts
 Microvias and ATE circuit board


Instructors

Woody Adams, Cerprobe
Glenn Wells, Intelect Network Technologies
Mike Korson, Texas Instruments
Scott Williams, Cerprobe
Pete Profilet, Texas Instruments
Mike Millward, CAD Design Software
Barry Hurley, DDI
Others from Agilent, Cerprobe, and Probe Tech


Sponsors

Cerprobe

Cerprobe is a global company which offers comprehensive solutions for
semiconductor test integration and is a world leader in the design and
manufacture of probe cards, ATE interface assemblies, and ATE test
boards. Additional information about Cerprobe is available at
www.cerprobe.com

Additional Sponsors include:

Cadence  CAD Design Software  Circuit Technology Inc.   DDI    Mentor
Plano CAD   Valor    Velie    Veribest    Zuken


North Texas Chapter IPC Designers Council
PCB Design for the ATE Industry


Conference Agenda

Thursday, May 11th:
 8:00 am Conference registration
Breakfast

9:00 am Keynote Address:
“Future Trends in the Semiconductor Industry”
  Carl Johnson, Infrastructure
Carl Johnson is the President and co-founder of INFRASTRUCTURE based in
Carrollton, Texas. His Wall Street experience includes 7 years with
Merrill
Lynch. For the past six years as an analyst with INFRASTRUCTURE, Carl
has studied the semiconductor, semiconductor equipment / materials and
related industries. He oversees the distribution and content of all
publications released by the organization. He also writes columns for
several trade and financial publications, and has publicly spoken about
investing and the industry at numerous events.

9:30 am Session 1:
“A Successful Process For Rapid ATE Board Development”
Mike Korson, Texas Instruments

10:30 am Break

11:00 am Session 2:
“Effective CAD Library Management”
Pete Profilet, Texas Instruments

12:30 pm Lunch

2:00 pm Session 3:
  “Probe Card / PIB Design”
  Scott Williams, Cerprobe

3:30 pm Break

4:00 pm Session 4:
  “Probe Assembly”
  TBD, Probe Technology

5:00 pm Open bar

6:00 pm Dinner

7:00 pm Dessert and coffee
"Texas Wit and Wisdom"
Wallace Chariton, Historian

8:00 pm- Bar open – music and networking
11:00 pm Close


Friday, May 12th:

8:30 am Breakfast

9:00 am Session 5:
“Power Distribution/Decoupling and Sensing”
  TBD, Cerprobe

10:00 am Break

10:15 am Session 6:
“Shortcomings of EDA tools in the ATE Industry”
Mike Millward, CAD Design Software

11:15 am Break

11:30 am Session 7:
  “Socket and Adapter Concepts “
TBD, Agilent

12:30 pm Lunch

1:30 pm  Session 8:
“PCB Materials, Properties, Selection, and Special Processes”
TBD, Cerprobe

2:30 pm Break

2:45 pm Session 9:
“Micro Via Technology”
Barry Hurley, DDI

3:30 pm Panel Discussion



LOCATION, TIMES AND HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS

The two day conference will be held at Omni Hotel, 701 East Campbell
Road, Richardson [Dallas] Texas, on Thursday May 11th and Friday May
12th, 2000.

A buffet breakfast will be served on both Thursday before and during
registration and on Friday morning. Lunch will be provided on both
Thursday and Friday, and a dinner featuring an interesting guest speaker
will be served on Thursday night. Breaks with coffee, tea and light
snacks will also be provided on both Thursday and Friday.

Sleeping rooms are available at the Omni Hotel at a special conference
rate of $125.00 per night on May 10th and 11th, and $89.00 per night for
May 12th and 13th for those wishing to extend their stay. Call
1-800-843-3331 and ask for “ATE Conference” rates. Rooms are limited and
reservations are required by April 21 to receive the conference rates.

REGISTRATION

The conference registration fees are $395 for IPC Designers Council
members and $495 for non-members. As a special concession to those
interested in joining the Designers Council, we are offering
registrations to non-members at $445 and this will include their IPC
membership fees to join the North Texas Chapter of the Designers
Council. Registration fees will include the conference proceedings and
meals detailed above.

Early registration is recommended. Please fax registrations to (419) 781
5518. For more information, please call Keith Larson, Circuit Technology
Inc., (817) 481 7281.


CANCELLATIONS

Cancellations received before April 21st  will be refunded in full.
Individuals who fail to cancel will be billed for the registration fee.

Registration Form:
Name_______________________________________
Email_____________________________________

Company_____________________________________Phone
wk._________________________________

Title_________________________________________Fax______________________________________

Chapter Member? ______________________________Which
Chapter?____________________________


Method of Payment: Make checks payable to The North Texas Chapter IPC
Designers Council.

Charge my credit card:
Visa_____Amex________Mastercard____________Other___________

Credit Card Number__________________________________Exp.
Date____________________

Signature__________________________________________

Print Name as it appears on
Card____________________________________________________

PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS: Payment must be made by check or credit card with
your completed registration.  Your registration form will not be
processed without payment.

Register online:
http://www.circuit-technology.com/html/ipc_design_council.html
Call:  817 481-7281  (Keith Larson)
Fax:   817 481-0241
Mail:  Keith Larson c/o Circuit Technology Inc., 500 Ginger Court,
Southlake, TX  76092