Power sink for IC temperature control
First Claim
1. An electronic device, comprising:
- a semiconductor substrate having a plurality of semiconductor devices forming a functional circuit, the semiconductor substrate being a semiconductor chip substrate of the electronic device structured as an integrated circuit (IC);
an integrated temperature sensor integrated on the semiconductor substrate;
a power dissipation circuit formed on the semiconductor substrate in electrical isolation from the functional circuit;
a comparator on the semiconductor substrate, the comparator arranged to compare an output of the integrated temperature sensor with a desired temperature value;
a timer circuit, on the semiconductor substrate, electrically connected to the power dissipation circuit and the comparator for enabling the power dissipation circuit for a predetermined time period if the comparator shows the output of the integrated temperature sensor being lower than the desired temperature value, the timer circuit including a setting to control the comparison of the output of the integrated temperature sensor with the desired temperature value; and
a memory disposed on the semiconductor substrate such that the desired temperature value is stored in the memory as part of a non-constant time dependent temperature profile stored in the memory.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The use of a power sink function in IC testing results in a simple and rapid method for testing ICs, and assembled modules, at elevated temperature profiles without the use of environmental ovens. Testing IC devices at elevated temperatures may be useful for ‘burn-in’, for ‘hot sort’ performance testing that may be used in electronic devices such as DRAM memory, logic, communication devices, and microprocessors. The power sink function may be implemented as an additional isolated area of active devices, or as a section of the circuit that is not involved in the testing procedure. Alternately, the power dissipation circuit may consist of a resistive path between two external pins that are not used for IC operation, where the resistor may be on the IC or on the package. This allows for control of the temperature level and profile by simple adjustment of the voltage between the two external pins.
57 Citations
30 Claims
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1. An electronic device, comprising:
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a semiconductor substrate having a plurality of semiconductor devices forming a functional circuit, the semiconductor substrate being a semiconductor chip substrate of the electronic device structured as an integrated circuit (IC); an integrated temperature sensor integrated on the semiconductor substrate; a power dissipation circuit formed on the semiconductor substrate in electrical isolation from the functional circuit; a comparator on the semiconductor substrate, the comparator arranged to compare an output of the integrated temperature sensor with a desired temperature value; a timer circuit, on the semiconductor substrate, electrically connected to the power dissipation circuit and the comparator for enabling the power dissipation circuit for a predetermined time period if the comparator shows the output of the integrated temperature sensor being lower than the desired temperature value, the timer circuit including a setting to control the comparison of the output of the integrated temperature sensor with the desired temperature value; and a memory disposed on the semiconductor substrate such that the desired temperature value is stored in the memory as part of a non-constant time dependent temperature profile stored in the memory. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. An electronic device, comprising:
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a plurality of devices and an integrated temperature sensor on a semiconductor substrate, the semiconductor substrate being a semiconductor chip substrate of the electronic device structured as an integrated circuit (IC); a power dissipation circuit on the substrate in electrical isolation from the devices; a comparator connected to an output value of the integrated temperature sensor and to an electronic memory storage device storing a desired temperature value such that the desired temperature value is stored in the electronic memory storage device as part of a non-constant time dependent temperature profile stored in the electronic memory storage device; and a timer circuit connected to the power dissipation circuit, the timer circuit including a setting to control comparison of the output of the integrated temperature sensor with the desired temperature value. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A device, comprising:
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a functional circuit comprising a plurality of semiconductor devices on a semiconductor substrate, the semiconductor substrate being a semiconductor chip substrate of the device structured as an integrated circuit (IC); an integrated temperature sensor on the semiconductor substrate; a power dissipation circuit on the substrate; a comparator to compare an output of the integrated temperature sensor with a desired temperature value; a timer circuit electrically connected to the power dissipation circuit and the comparator, the timer to enable the power dissipation circuit for a predetermined time period when the comparator measures the output of the integrated temperature sensor lower than the desired temperature value, the timer circuit including a setting to control the comparison of output of the integrated temperature sensor with the desired temperature value; and a memory disposed on the semiconductor substrate such that the desired temperature value is stored in the memory as part of a non-constant time dependent temperature profile in the memory. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification