Current monitor cuts automotive ATE costs

Dialog Semiconductor uses the QD-1011 advanced quiescent supply current monitor for running IDDQ tests on its automotive products as part of its production test flow.

Q-Star Test, the leading supplier of advanced high speed and highly accurate IDD test and measurement solutions today announced that Dialog Semiconductor has selected its QD-1011 advanced IDDQ monitor product for running IDDQ tests on its automotive products as part of its production test flow.

Hans Manhaeve, President and CEO of Q-Star Test, noted: "We are honoured that our QD-1011 product, part of our QD-10xx family of products, has been selected by Dialog Semiconductor, a world-leading developer and supplier of power management, audio and imaging semiconductor technology".

"Building on a previously successful evaluation process we are happy to see that our QD-1011 advanced IDDQ product is now finding its way to the Dialog Semiconductor production test floor".

"Our relationship with Dialog Semiconductor evolved significantly throughout the course of their evaluation process, and we look forward to working together to further develop innovative new test solutions for the automotive market".

Dialog Semiconductor is employing Q-Star Test's QD-1011 to support the test of its automotive products.

Prior to production application, the company conducted an intensive evaluation.

"Making use of Q-Star Test's QD-1011 product allows us to reduce test costs significantly compared with conventional IDDQ testing, whilst meeting our stringent quality demands when implementing our advanced IDDQ screening methodologies that include running hundreds of IDDQ strobe points, as well as offering us improved IDDQ data quality", stated Markus Schmid, Manager of the Dialog Semiconductor Test Engineering Group.

Dialog Semiconductor has already begun implementing the Q-Star Test QD-1011 as part of its production test floor and a further roll-out is planned.

SoC and SiP designs are rapidly becoming preferred solutions as semiconductor manufacturers seek to optimise shrinking device geometries by squeezing greater amounts of device content and functionality onto a single chip or into a single package.

The resulting, highly integrated devices have created a new set of challenges for testing such parts within economic constraints.

For automotive parts there are the additional and increasing quality demands.

Q-Star Test is committed to develop (supply) current based test and measurement solutions and related methodologies to address these issues.

"Customers have reported significant cost savings using our solutions whilst improving their product quality", added Manhaeve.

"We believe this kind of performance is paramount to ensuring chipmakers' ability to meet their aggressive product roadmap requirements".

The QD-1011 is an advanced IDDQ monitor/measurement module belonging to Q-Star Test's QD-10xx Product family of advanced IDDQ measurement solutions.

The QD-1011 is a full featured, configurable quiescent supply current (IDDQ) monitor and requires a minimum number of dedicated test channels.

The QD-1011 module supports both standard well as advanced IDDQ measurement strategies such as various delta-IDDQ approaches, current ratios and relative IDDQ schemes.

The module provides digital measurement values as well as a pass/fail output signal.

onboard memory and data processing capabilities allow offloading the IDDQ data processing and decision making from the ATE to the module, implementing advanced measurement and decision making strategies (pre- and post-stress IDDQ, current ratios) in an easy and automated way.

The QD-1011 can be configured for measurement ranges up to 30mA, can handle switching currents up to 30A, has a high capacitive loading driving capability, offers a measurement repeatability better than 0.01% of the measurement range and has a typical IDDQ measurement time of 150us.

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