Wafer-level testing (wafer sort) is used in the semiconductor industry to reduce packaging and test cost. However, a large number of wafer-probe contacts lead to higher yield loss. Therefore, it is desirable that the number of chip pins contacted by tester channels during wafer sort be kept small to reduce the yield loss resulting from improper contacts. Since test time and the number of contacted chip pins are major practical constraints for wafer sort, not all scan-based digital tests can be applied to the die under test. We propose an optimization framework based on mathematical programming (integer linear programming, nonlinear programming, and geometric programming) and fast heuristic methods. This framework addresses test-access mechanism (TAM) optimization and test-length selection for wafer-level testing of core-based digital system-on-chips (SoCs). The objective here is to design a TAM architecture and determine test lengths for the embedded cores such that the overall SoC defect-screening probability at wafer sort is maximized. Defect probabilities for the embedded cores, obtained using statistical yield modeling, are incorporated in the optimization framework. Simulation results are presented for five of the ITC'02 SoC Test benchmarks.

Wafer-level test during burn-in (WLTBI) is a promising technique to reduce test and burn-in costs in semiconductor manufacturing. However, scan-based testing leads to significant power variations in a die during test-pattern application. This variation adversely affects the accuracy of predictions of junction temperatures and the time required for burn-in. We present a test-pattern ordering technique for WLTBI, where the objective is to minimize the variation in power consumption during test application. The test-pattern ordering problem for WLTBI is formulated and solved optimally using integer linear programming. Efficient heuristic methods are also presented to easily solve the pattern-ordering problem for large circuits. Simulation results are presented for the ISCAS'89 and the IWLS'05 benchmark circuits, and the proposed ordering technique is compared with two baseline methods that carry out pattern ordering to minimize peak power and average power, respectively. A third baseline method that randomly orders test patterns is also used to evaluate the proposed methods.

Product cost is a key driver in the consumer electronics market, which is characterized by low profit margins and the use of a variety of ldquobig-D/small-Ardquo mixed-signal system-on-chip (SoC) designs. Packaging cost has recently emerged as a major contributor to the product cost for such SoCs. Wafer-level testing can be used to screen defective dies, thereby reducing packaging cost. We propose a new correlation-based signature analysis technique that is especially suitable for mixed-signal test at the wafer-level using low-cost digital testers. The proposed method overcomes the limitations of measurement inaccuracies at the wafer-level. A generic cost model is used to evaluate the effectiveness of wafer-level testing of analog and digital cores in a mixed-signal SoC, and to study its impact on test escapes, yield loss, and packaging costs. Experimental results are presented for a typical mixed-signal ldquobig-D/small-Ardquo SoC, which contains a large section of flattened digital logic and several large mixed-signal cores.

Wafer-level test during burn-in (WLTBI) has recently emerged as a promising technique to reduce test and burn-in costs in semiconductor manufacturing. However, test during burn-in can lead to significant power variations in the die. This variation adversely affects the accuracy of predictions of junction temperatures and the time required for burn-in. We present a test-pattern manipulation technique for WLTBI, where the objective is to minimize the variation in power consumption during test application. Test-pattern manipulation is carried out by carefully filling the don't-care bits in test cubes. The X-fill problem is formulated and solved using an efficient polynomial-time algorithm. Simulation results are presented for the ISCAS'89 and the IWLS'05 benchmark circuits, and the proposed technique is compared with three baseline methods that carry out pattern manipulation to minimize peak-power consumption.

Wafer-level test during burn-in (WLTBI) has recently emerged as a promising technique to reduce test and burn-in costs in semiconductor manufacturing. However, the testing of multiple cores of a system-on-chip (SoC) in parallel during WLTBI leads to constantly-varying device power during the duration of the test. This power variation adversely affects predictions of temperature and the time required for burn-in. We present a test-scheduling technique for WLTBI of core-based SoCs, where the primary objective is to minimize the variation in power consumption during test. A secondary objective is to minimize the test application time. Simulation results are presented for two ITC'02 SoC benchmarks, and the proposed technique is compared with two baseline methods.

Wafer-level test during burn-in (WLTBI) is a promising technique to reduce test and burn-in costs in semiconductor manufacturing. However, scan-based testing leads to significant power variations in a die during test-pattern application. This variation adversely affects the accuracy of predictions of junction temperatures and the time required for burn-in. We present a test-pattern ordering technique for WLTBI, where the objective is to minimize the variation in power consumption during test application. The test-pattern ordering problem for WLTBI is formulated and it is solved using an efficient heuristic technique. Simulation results are presented for the ISCAS'89 and the IWLS'05 benchmark circuits, and the proposed ordering technique is compared with two baseline methods that carry out pattern-ordering to minimize peak power and average power, respectively. A third baseline method that randomly orders test patterns is also used to evaluate the proposed methods.

Many system-on-chip (SoC) integrated circuits contain embedded cores with different scan frequencies. To better meet the test requirements for such heterogeneous SoCs, leading tester companies have recently introduced port-scalable testers, which can simultaneously drive groups of channels at different data rates. However, the number of tester channels available for scan testing is limited; therefore, a higher shift frequency can increase the test time for a core if the resulting test access architecture reduces the bit-width used to access it. We present a scalable test planning technique that exploits port scalability of testers to reduce SoC test time. We compare the proposed heuristic optimization method to two baseline methods based on prior works that use a single scan data rate for all embedded cores. We also propose a power-aware test planning technique to effectively utilize port-scalable testers under constraints of test power consumption. Experimental results are presented for power-aware test scheduling to illustrate the impact of power constraints on overall test time.

Product cost is a key driver in the consumer electronics market, which is characterized by low profit margins and the use of a variety of "big-D/small-A" mixed-signal system-on-chip (SoC) designs. Packaging cost has recently emerged as a major contributor to the product cost for such SoCs. Wafer-level testing can be used to screen defective dies, thereby reducing packaging cost. We propose a new correlation-based signature analysis technique that is especially suitable for mixed-signal test at the wafer-level using low-cost digital testers. The proposed method overcomes the limitations of measurement inaccuracies at the wafer-level. A generic cost model is developed to evaluate the effectiveness of wafer-level testing of analog and digital cores in a mixed-signal SoC, and to study its impact on test escapes, yield loss and packaging costs. Experimental results are presented for a typical mixed-signal "big-D/small-A" SoC, which contains a large section of flattened digital logic and several large mixed-signal cores.

Product cost is a major driver in the consumer electronics market, which is characterized by low profit margins and the use of core-based system-on-chip (SoC) designs. Packaging has been recognized as a significant contributor to the product cost for such SoCs. To reduce packaging cost and the test cost for packaged chips, wafer-level testing (wafer sort) is used in the semiconductor industry to screen defective dies. However, since test time is a major practical constraint for wafer sort, even more so than for package test, not all the scan-based digital tests can be applied to the die under test. We present an optimal test-length selection technique for wafer-level testing of core-based SoCs. This technique, which is based on a combination of statistical yield modeling and integer linear programming, allows us to determine the number of patterns to use for each embedded core during wafer sort such that the probability of screening defective dies is maximized for a given upper limit on the SoC test time. We also present a heuristic method to handle large next-generation SoC designs. Simulation results are presented for five of the ITC'02 SoC Test benchmarks, and the optimal test-length selection approach is compared with the heuristic method.

Product cost is a major driver in the consumer electronics market, which is characterized by low profit margins and the use of core-based system-on-chip (SoC) designs. Packaging has been recognized as a significant contributor to the product cost for such SoCs. To reduce packaging cost and the test cost for packaged chips, wafer-level testing (wafer sort) is used in the semiconductor industry to screen defective dies. However, since test time is a major practical constraint for wafer sort, even more so than for package test, not all the scan-based digital tests can be applied to the die under test. We present an optimal test-length selection technique for wafer-level testing of core-based SoCs. This technique, which is based on a combination of statistical yield modeling and integer linear programming, allows us to determine the number of patterns to use for each embedded core during wafer sort such that the probability of screening defective dies is maximized for a given upper limit on the SoC test time. Simulation results are presented for five of the ITC'02 SoC test benchmarks