Semiconductor device failure analysis improved

Enhanced products offer major improvements in how net failures can be correlated to inline defect data and failed net frequency.

Magma Design Automation has improved its Knights LogicMap and IntensityMap software that enable faster, more accurate semiconductor device failure analysis and debug for logic devices.

The enhanced products offer major improvements in how net failures can be correlated to inline defect data (random defects) and failed net frequency (systematic defects).

LogicMap enables logical nets to be translated and normalised into physical co-ordinates, facilitating correlation of failed nets with any fab inline data.

By stacking the results of multiple failed nets from multiple die of the same product and colour coding them by frequency, engineers can now identify systematic failure hot spots and focus analysis efforts on these areas.

New, interactive cross-mapping of IntensityMap results with Camelot CAD navigation provides faster, more accurate closed-loop analysis and debug.

Validated failed nets can be cross-mapped to layout versus schematic results, and then Camelot tool drivers can drive failure analysis equipment to exact physical co-ordinates of the failed nets for quicker device debugging.

With these improvements IntensityMap accelerates device debugging and turnaround for design optimisation.

"The faster the root cause of any chip failure can be identified, the sooner chips can go into full production", said Ankush Oberai, Vice President of Magma's Fab Analysis Business Unit.

"With LogicMap and IntensityMap, engineers can more quickly and confidently identify the suspect process step using inline defect data and drastically lower the need for physical failure analysis, shortening the failure analysis process and significantly reducing costs".

In addition to improving correlation of net failures to inline defect data and cross-mapping to Camelot, LogicMap and IntensityMap enhancements include: a port to Linux, enabling engineers to use higher performance, lower cost hardware; simplified data inputs for improved automation and data accuracy; IntensityMap support for zonal analysis and cross mapping with the industry-standard Camelot CAD navigation system improves accuracy and analysis flexibility; and ATPG support expanded for all primary fault diagnostic tools, including Fastscan, Tetramax, Encounter Diagnostics, TestCompress and Yield Assist.

This allows feedback into the implementation flow for device optimisation, tying design to lab to fab and providing true design for manufacturability.

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