Patent ID: 6124724
Filing Date: 2000-09-26
Classification: G01R

Abstract:
A method of measuring electronic signal propagation delay for a given voltage level on an integrated circuit device, the method comprising the steps of:measuring a first voltage signal at a first time at a first location and the first voltage signal at a second time at a second location;calculating a first propagation delay for the first voltage level on the device from the time elapsed between the first and second times;measuring a second voltage signal at a third location at a third time and the second voltage signal at a fourth location at a fourth time;calculating a second propagation delay for the second voltage level on the device from the time elapsed between the third and fourth times;calculating a slope on a time vs. voltage plot for the device, based on the first and second calculated propagation delays and the first and second voltage levels;establishing a desired test point for the device, the desired test point comprising a desired signal propagation delay;calculating, via linear extrapolation of the desired test point and the calculated slope, a third voltage level corresponding to a first strobe time;testing the device at the first strobe time by measuring the propagation of a test voltage signal at the third voltage level; andfailing the device at the first strobe time in a manner dependent upon the propagation delay of the test voltage signal at the third voltage level.