Visible light laser voltage probing on thinned substrates
| DWPI Title: System for laser voltage probing of integrated circuit, has instructions that causes processing unit to determine state of integrated circuit based upon comparing test signal with base signal and generate output indicating state of circuit |
| Abstract: The various technologies presented herein relate to utilizing visible light in conjunction with a thinned structure to enable characterization of operation of one or more features included in an integrated circuit (IC). Short wavelength illumination (e.g., visible light) is applied to thinned samples (e.g., ultra-thinned samples) to achieve a spatial resolution for laser voltage probing (LVP) analysis to be performed on smaller technology node silicon-on-insulator (SOI) and bulk devices. Thinning of a semiconductor material included in the IC (e.g., backside material) can be controlled such that the thinned semiconductor material has sufficient thickness to enable operation of one or more features comprising the IC during LVP investigation. |
| Use: System for laser voltage probing of integrated circuit. |
| Advantage: The semiconductor material of the device is thinned to a sufficient extent such that shorter, visible wavelengths can be used for laser voltage probe analysis, thus, enabling improved spatial resolution and enhanced laser voltage probe signals, when compared to an infrared based laser voltage probe system. The thickness of the thinned semiconductor material is sufficient to enable operation of the integrated circuit device during respective transmission/reflection of the light, while enabling transmissionand reflection of light through the thinned semiconductor material. |
| Novelty: The system (100) has memory (162) that stores instructions that, when executed by the processing unit, cause the processing unit (160) to receive the test signal from the detector (140), compare test signal with a base signal, in which the base signal is obtained from a test integrated circuit having a known condition, determine, based upon comparing test signal with base signal, a state of integrated circuit, in which the state identifies one or more differences between test signal and the base signal, and generating output that is indicative of the state of the integrated circuit feature. |
| Filed: 8/26/2015 |
| Application Number: US14836713A |
| Tech ID: SD 13136.1 |
| This invention was made with Government support under Contract No. DE-NA0003525 awarded by the United States Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The Government has certain rights in the invention. |
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