Semiconductor apparatus, stack semiconductor apparatus, and test method of the stack semiconductor apparatus

• US 10,241,150 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2016
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Woo, Seung-han, Oh, Reum, Lee, Hae-suk
• Primary Examiner(s): Koval, Melissa J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Trung Q.
• Application Number:
  US15/207,526
• Publication Number:
  US 20170059648A1
• Time in Patent Office: 987 Days
• Field of Search: 324600, 324500, 32476203-76206, 32476301, 32475022, 32475705, 32420713
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/2853 Electrical testing of internal connections or -isolation, e.g. latch-up or chip-to-lead connections G01R31/31717 takes precedence; test of chip-to-PCB or lead-to-PCB connections G01R31/66
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/2884 using dedicated test connectors, test elements or test circuits on the IC under test G01R31/2855 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/318513 Test of Multi-Chip-Moduls
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 22/34 Circuits for electrically characterising or monitoring manufacturing processes, e. g. whole test die, wafers filled with test structures, on-board-devices incorporated on each die, process control monitors or pad structures thereof, devices in scribe line switching, multiplexing, gating devices G01R19/25; process control with lithography, e.g. dose control, G03F7/20; structures for alignment control by optical means G03F7/70633
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2225/06541 Conductive via connections through the device, e.g. vertical interconnects, through silicon via [TSV] manufacturing via connections per se H01L21/76898
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/481 Internal lead connections, e.g. via connections, feedthrough structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/0657 Stacked arrangements of devices

Abstract

A semiconductor apparatus includes two or more semiconductor chips and a tester. The two or more semiconductor chips are electrically connected through one or more through-silicon vias (TSVs). The tester is on at least one of the two or more semiconductor chips and tests the state of at least one TSV based on an output signal of the TSV. The TSV is selected as a signal transmission TSV based on the state of the TSV.

Claims

1. A semiconductor apparatus, comprising:

two or more semiconductor chips electrically connected through one or more through-silicon vias (TSVs); and

a TSV tester on at least one of the two or more semiconductor chips, the TSV tester to test a state of each of the one or more TSVs based on a signal output through each of the one or more TSVs and to determine whether to use a TSV among the one or more TSVs as a signal transmission TSV based on the state of the TSV,

wherein the TSV tester includes;

a TSV state sensor to generate a state signal corresponding to the state of each of the one or more TSVs based on a test output signal, the test output signal to be output when a test input signal to test each of the one or more TSVs passes through each of the one or more TSVs; and

a TSV selector to select at least one of the one or more TSVs as the signal transmission TSV based on the state signal,

wherein the TSV state sensor is to determine whether each of the one or more TSVs is in a normal state based on whether signal types of the test input signal and the test output signal are equal, and

wherein;

the test input signal is a pulse signal, and

the TSV state sensor is to determine whether the test output signal has a pulse shape equal to a pulse shape of the test input signal and is to generate a state signal of a first level when the pulse shapes of the test output signal and the test input signal are equal, the TSV state sensor to generate a state signal of a second level when the pulse shape of the test output signal is different from the pulse shape of the test input signal.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the TSV selector is to select a TSV corresponding to the state signal of the first level from among the one or more TSVs as the signal transmission TSV.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

one or more auxiliary TSVs to transmit the signal instead of the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV, wherein the TSV tester is to test the state of the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV and to switch between the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV and an auxiliary TSV among the one or more auxiliary TSVs based on the state of the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV.

4. A method for testing a stack semiconductor apparatus electrically connected through one or more through-silicon vias (TSVs), the method comprising:

applying a test input signal, to test each of the one or more TSVs, to each of the one or more TSVs;

generating a state signal of each of the one or more TSVs based on a test output signal output when the test input signal passes through each of the one or more TSVs; and

determining whether to select a TSV from among the one or more TSVs as a signal transmission TSV of the stack semiconductor apparatus based on the state signal,

wherein generating the state signal of each of the one or more TSVs includes;

monitoring the test output signal; and

determining whether each of the one or more TSVs is in a normal state based on a comparison of signal types of the test input signal and the test output signal,

wherein determining whether each of the one or more TSVs is in a normal state includes determining whether the signal types of the test output signal and the test input signal are equal, and

wherein generating the state signal of each of the one or more TSVs includes generating a state signal indicating a normal state when the signal types of the test output signal and the test input signal are equal.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein determining whether to select the TSV from among the one or more TSVs as the signal transmission TSV includes selecting a TSV corresponding to the state signal indicating the normal state as the signal transmission TSV.

6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein, when a TSV among the one or more TSVs is determined to be in an abnormal state based on a comparison of the signal types of the test input signal and the test output signal, the method includes:

generating a TSV blocking signal to block signal transmission through the TSV determined to be in the abnormal state; and

blocking the TSV determined to be in the abnormal state based on the TSV blocking signal.

7. The method as claimed in claim 4, further comprising:

receiving a power-on signal; and

generating a test command to test each of the one or more TSVs based on the power-on signal.

8. The method as claimed in claim 4, further comprising:

applying the test input signal to the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV;

monitoring the test output signal output when the test input signal passes through the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV; and

determining whether the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV is in a normal state based on a comparison of signal types of the test input signal and the test output signal output through the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

the one or more TSVs include auxiliary TSVs, and

the method includes, when the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV is in an abnormal state, selecting, instead of the TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV, an auxiliary TSV from among the auxiliary TSVs as the signal transmission TSV.

10. The method as claimed in claim 4, further comprising:

generating a level fixing signal based on the state signal; and

fixing a level of the state signal to a previous level based on the level fixing signal.

11. A semiconductor apparatus, comprising:

first and second through-silicon vias (TSVs);

a tester to select the second TSV as a signal transmission TSV when the first TSV is in an abnormal state, wherein the first and second TSVs electrically connect two semiconductor chips; and

one or more auxiliary TSVs to transmit a signal instead of the second TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV, wherein the tester is to test the state of the second TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV and to switch between the second TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV and an auxiliary TSV among the one or more auxiliary TSVs based on the state of the second TSV selected as the signal transmission TSV.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the tester is to test a state of the first TSV based on a signal output from the first TSV.

13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein the tester is to determine that the first TSV is in the abnormal state when the signal output from the first TSV is different from a test signal input into the first TSV.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the tester is to determine that the first TSV is in the abnormal state when a shape or level of the signal output from the first TSV is determined to be different from a shape or level of the test signal input into the first TSV.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

a selector to select among the first TSV and the second TSV such that a data signal may be applied to the first TSV or the second TSV.