System and method for testing integrated circuits by transient signal analysis
First Claim
1. A system for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis comprising:
- a comparison circuit configured to generate a comparison signal from an IC transient signal and a reference signal, said IC transient signal being specific to a monitored supply voltage at said IC; and
circuitry operationally coupled to said comparison circuit, said circultry being configured to manipulate said comparison signal to generate an output waveform, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal for determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard, wherein said circuitry includes a unity-gain inverter in communication with said comparison circuit, said unity-gain inverter being configured to receive and invert said comparison signal.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis includes a comparison circuit that is configured to generate a comparison signal from an IC transient signal and a reference signal. Circuitry operationally coupled to the comparison circuit manipulates the comparison signal to generate a first output waveform area indicative of an absolute area of positive and negative portions within the comparison signal. The comparison circuit and the circuitry may include seven operational-amplifiers (op-amps) or ten op-amps. As a further processing sequence, a second output waveform area that is indicative of an absolute area of positive and negative portions within a second comparison signal is generated. In one embodiment, a first value representing the first waveform area and a second value representing the second waveform area are plotted to determine if the plotted X-Y coordinate falls within a predefined standard for determining the pass/fail status of the IC.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A system for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis comprising:
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a comparison circuit configured to generate a comparison signal from an IC transient signal and a reference signal, said IC transient signal being specific to a monitored supply voltage at said IC; and
circuitry operationally coupled to said comparison circuit, said circultry being configured to manipulate said comparison signal to generate an output waveform, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal for determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard, wherein said circuitry includes a unity-gain inverter in communication with said comparison circuit, said unity-gain inverter being configured to receive and invert said comparison signal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A system for determining a pass/fail status of a device under test (DUT) by transient signal analysis comprising:
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a source for providing a supply voltage to a power supply terminal of said DUT;
a comparison circuit operationally coupled to said power supply terminal, said comparison circuit being enabled to generate a comparison signal from a DUT transient signal and a reference transient signal, said DUT transient signal being monitored at said power supply terminal of said DUT; and
circuitry operationally coupled to said comparison circuit, said circuitry being enabled to identify sampling portions of said comparison signal, said sampling portions being indicative of said pass/fall status of said DUT, said circuitry including an inverting amplifier, said inverting amplifier being enabled to invert and amplify said comparison signal to generate an inverted amplified signal. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis comprising the steps of:
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providing and IC transient signal specific to a monitored supply voltage to said IC;
generating a comparison signal, including comparing said IC transient signal with a reference signal;
inverting said comparison signal by a unity-gain inverter generating an output waveform using said comparison signal after said comparison signal has been inverted, including manipulating said comparison signal by circuitry, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal; and
determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard on a basis of said output waveform. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A system for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis comprising:
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a comparison circuit configured to generate a comparison signal from an IC transient signal and a reference signal, said IC transient signal being specific to a monitored supply voltage at said IC;
circuitry operationally coupled to said comparison circuit, said circuitry being configured to manipulate said comparison signal to generate an output waveform, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal for determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard, wherein said circuitry is configured to generate a second output waveform area from a second comparison signal, said second output waveform area having an absolute area of positive and negative portions within a second output waveform of said second comparison signal, said second comparison signal being generated from a second IC transient signal and a second reference signal; and
a correlator in communication with said circuitry, said correlator being configured to plot a first value corresponding to an output waveform area calculated for said output waveform over a predefined time interval with a second value corresponding to said second output waveform area over a corresponding time interval for determining if said IC meets said predetermined standard. - View Dependent Claims (24)
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25. A system for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis (TSA) comprising:
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a comparison circuit configured to generate a comparison signal from an IC transient signal and a reference signal, said IC transient signal being an acquired waveform of a monitored IC supply voltage as a function of time during which logic transitions occur at said IC, said reference signal being a reference waveform of voltage as a function of time, said comparison circuit being enabled to generate said comparison signal as a comparison waveform that is a difference between said acquired waveform and said reference waveform; and
circuitry operationally coupled to said comparison circuit, said circuitry being configured to manipulate said comparison signal to generate an output waveform, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal for determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard.
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26. A method for testing an integrated circuit (IC) by transient signal analysis (TSA) comprising the steps of:
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providing an IC transient signal specific to a monitored supply voltage to said IC, including acquiring said IC transient signal as an acquired waveform of said monitored supply voltage as a function of time during which logic transitions occur at said IC;
generating a comparison signal, including comparing said IC transient signal with a reference waveform of voltage as a function of time, said comparing including a waveform differencing procedure;
generating an output waveform, including manipulating said comparison signal by circuitry, said output waveform being indicative of changes made by said circuitry to said comparison signal; and
determining if said IC meets a predetermined standard on a basis of said output waveform.
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Specification