International Business Machines Corporation

Globalfoundries Inc.

Mentor Graphics Corporation

Globalfoundries U.S. 2 LLC

Jeanne P Bickford

Nazmul Habib

Susan K Lichtensteiger

Baozhen Li

Eric A Foreman

Juergen Koehl

Tad Jeffrey Wilder

Jason D Hibbeler

Mark William Kuemerle

Peter Anton Habitz

Markus Buehler

Robert J McMahon

Vikram Iyengar

Jinjun Xiong

John Robert Goss

Theodoros Anemikos

Igor Arsovski

Troy Joseph Perry

Edward J Nowak

Brent A Anderson

Erik L Hedberg

Pascal A Nsame

Mark Steven Styduhar

Thomas Gregory Sopchak

Kevin K Dezfulian

Brian A Worth

Venkatasreekanth Prudvi

Anand Kumaraswamy

Jeanne H Raymond

Alok Chandra

Sandeep Prajapati

Vladimir P Zolotov

Jeffrey G Hemmett

Howard Smith Landis

David E Lackey

Sudeep Mandal

Paul J Grzymkowski

David M Picozzi

David James Hathaway

Michael Richard Ouellette

Clarence Rosser Ogilvie

Kerim Kalafala

Vernon Roberts Norman

Daniel Nelson Maynard

Paul Stephen McLaughlin

Anthony D Polson

Alan Weger

Ivan L Wemple

Donald J Samuels

Andreas Arp

Rahul K Nadkarni

Edward Kelley Evans

Phung T Nguyen

Kerry A Kravec

Wing L Lai

Ian P Stobert

Laura S Chadwick

Joseph W Yoder

Philipp Salz

Raymond J Rosner

Sebnem Jaji

Roger J Yerdon

Gerald P Pomichter

Joseph J Oler, Jr

Douglas S Dewey

Bruce Balch

Brian M Trapp

Thomas S Barnett

Umberto Garofano

Andrew S Wienick

Aurelius L Graninger

Charles H Windisch, Jr

Rashmi D Chatty

James E Jasmin

William Y Chang

Mark D Aubel

Dileep N Netrabile

Howard B Druckerman

Gie Lee

Steven M Fox

Ernest A Viau, Jr

Donald J Hathaway

Sean Horner

Rebecca A Bickford

Michael T Ross

Bernhard J Wunder

Allan O Cruz

Michelle Gill

David V MacDonnell, Ii

Shashank B Sreekanta

A method and associated system. The method includes steps of: (a) a voltage bin is selected from of a set of voltage bins, each voltage bin having a different range of frequencies based on the highest operating frequency and the lowest operating frequency specified for an integrated circuit chip not previously tested; (b) a functional path test is performed on a selected path of a set of testable data paths of the integrated circuit chip not previously tested; (c) if the integrated circuit chip fails the functional path test, then a current supply voltage value is changed to a voltage value associated with a not previously selected voltage bin; (d) a not previously tested path of the set of testable paths is selected. Steps (b), (c) and (d) are repeated until every path of the set of testable paths has been tested.

Product performance test binning

Disclosed is a method for performing reliability qualification of manufactured integrated circuit (IC) chips. In the method, IC chips are manufactured according to a design and sorted into groups, which correspond to different process windows within a process distribution for the design. Group fail rates are determined for the groups. Reliability qualification of the manufactured IC chips is performed. Specifically, a sample of the IC chips is stress tested and the manufactured IC chips are qualified if the actual fail rate of the sample is no greater than an expected fail rate. The expected fail rate used is not, however, the expected overall fail rate for all the manufactured IC chips. Instead it is a unique expected fail rate for the specific sample itself and it is determined considering fail rate contributions from only those specific groups of IC chips from which the IC chips in the sample were selected.

Integrated circuit chip reliability qualification using a sample-specific expected fail rate

Disclosed is a method wherein selective voltage binning and leakage power screening of integrated circuit (IC) chips are performed. Additionally, pre-test power-optimized bin reassignments are made on a chip-by-chip basis. Specifically, a leakage power measurement of an IC chip selected from a voltage bin can is compared to a bin-specific leakage power screen value of the next slower voltage bin. If the leakage power measurement is higher, the IC chip will be left in the voltage bin to which it is currently assigned. If the leakage power measurement is lower, the IC chip will be reassigned to that next slower voltage bin. These processes can be iteratively repeated until no slower voltage bins are available or the IC chip cannot be reassigned. IC chips can subsequently be tested according to testing parameters, including the minimum test voltages, associated with the voltage bins to which they are finally assigned.

Pre-test power-optimized bin reassignment following selective voltage binning

A method, test system and computer program product and system for voltage binning integrated circuit chips. The method includes selecting or changing a voltage bin of a set of voltages bins corresponding to frequency specification limits of an integrated circuit chip using functional testing of data paths of the integrated circuit chip.

Various embodiments include approaches for designing three-dimensional (3D) integrated circuits (ICs). In one embodiment, a system is configured to: read an electronic chip identification (ECID) for a plurality of dies formed from distinct wafer lots, the ECID indicating a process performance parameter for each distinct wafer lot; create a reference table mapping a back-bias voltage to be applied to each die to the process performance parameter for each distinct wafer lot; determine performance requirements of a customer design for the 3D IC structure; assemble the design of the 3D IC structure including a set of dies selected from at least two of the distinct wafer lots; and assign a back bias voltage to each die based upon the performance requirements of the customer design and the reference table.

Performance matching in three-dimensional (3D) integrated circuit (IC) using back-bias compensation

Method of burn-in power optimization which includes: testing integrated circuit devices to record a performance speed for each of the integrated circuit devices; categorizing each integrated circuit device by a selective voltage binning (SVB) process into a voltage bin according to the performance speed of the integrated circuit device; performing a burn-in operation on each of the integrated circuit devices while toggling an SVB performance monitor on each of the integrated circuit devices; testing the plurality of integrated circuit devices after the burn-in operation; categorizing each integrated circuit device into the SVB voltage bin according to the performance speed of the integrated circuit device after the burn-in operation; when the SVB voltage bin after the burn-in operation corresponds to an SVB voltage bin having a slower performance speed than before the burn-in operation, changing the SVB voltage bin to the slower performance speed.

Burn-in power performance optimization

Systems and methods for optimizing timing/power risk SVB using a customer-supplied, non-linear voltage slope. Chips are manufactured according to an integrated circuit design. The minimum operating voltage and hardware variations for each device in the design is determined and a process distribution for the chips is divided into process windows. Vmax and Vmin to support system frequency are determined for each process window. Vmin vs. process-bin mean and sigma sensitivity is calculated using information about specific devices. The voltage for each process window that generates Vmin for specific devices is identified. Power at the slow end and fast end of each process window is evaluated using the voltage to support system frequency. Pmax is determined. Vmax for each process window that generates Pmax is determined. A voltage is identified between Vmin and Vmax that maximizes the timing margin for system frequency while minimizing risk for Pmax. The chips are sorted into different process windows, based on the voltage identified.

Timing/power risk optimized selective voltage binning using non-linear voltage slope

Disclosed are integrated circuit (IC) design methods, systems and computer program products that provide for area and/or power optimization through post-layout modification of design blocks. Specifically, a layout for an initial IC design is accessed. This initial IC design incorporates multiple instances of the same design block. Each instance includes a primary input connected to top-level logic for receiving a signal and one or more modifiable periphery sections. A timing analysis is performed to close timing and determine arrival times of the signal at the primary inputs of all instances of the design block, respectively, given the layout. The arrival times are then compared to a preselected threshold arrival time and the modifiable periphery section(s) of any specific instance of the design block having an arrival time that is equal to or less than the preselected threshold arrival time is selectively modified in order to generate an area and/or power optimized integrated circuit design.

Area and/or power optimization through post-layout modification of integrated circuit (IC) design blocks

Disclosed is an integrated circuit (IC) chip having an on-chip usable life depletion meter. This meter incorporates programmable bits, which represent units of usable life. These programmable bits are sequentially ordered from an initial programmable bit to a last programmable bit and are automatically programmed in order, as the expected usable life of the IC chip is depleted. These programmable bits are readable to determine the remaining usable life of the IC chip. Also disclosed is a method that uses the on-chip usable life depletion meter. In the method, the remaining usable life of an IC chip, once known, is used either as the basis for allowing re-use of the IC chip (e.g., for a non-critical application and when the remaining usable life is sufficient) or as the basis for preventing re-use of the IC chip (e.g., for a critical application or when the remaining usable life is insufficient).

On-chip usable life depletion meter and associated method

Methods and structures for leakage screening are disclosed. A method includes sorting devices manufactured from the same device design into voltage bins corresponding to a respective supply voltage. The method further includes determining a respective total power of each of the voltage bins. The method further includes determining a respective uplift power of the voltage bins. The method further includes determining a respective first leakage screen value for each of the voltage bins based on the respective uplift power of each of the voltage bins.

Selective voltage binning leakage screen

Disclosed are temperature-aware integrated circuit (IC) design methods and systems, which establish a customized power delivery network (PDN) for an IC early in the design process in order to generate, in a timely manner, a final IC design layout that can be used to manufacture IC chips that will exhibit minimal hotspots. Specifically, prior to placement of library elements, an initial PDN is established and divided into sections. The library elements are placed. Then, potential hotspots associated with any of the sections are identified and a customized PDN for the IC is established to eliminate the hotspots. That is, for each section, a total power consumption amount is determined. When the total power consumption amount is greater than the threshold, a hotspot is indicated and the section is customized to eliminate the hotspot. Also disclosed is a resulting IC chip structure.

Temperature-aware integrated circuit design methods and systems

Disclosed are electromigration (EM)-aware integrated circuit (IC) design techniques, which consider EM early in the IC design process in order to generate, in a timely manner, an IC design that can be used to manufacture IC chips that will exhibit minimal EM fails for improved IC reliability. Specifically, prior to placement of library elements, EM-relevant information is acquired and used to define protected zones around at least some of the library elements. Once the protected zones are defined, the library elements are placed relative to power rails in a previously designed power delivery network (PDN) and this placement process is performed such that each library element is prevented from being placed in a protected zone around any other library element to avoid EM fails in the PDN. Optionally, this same EM-relevant information is used during subsequent synthesis of a clock distribution network to prevent EM fails therein.

Electromigration-aware integrated circuit design methods and systems

Disclosed are methods for performing threshold voltage (VT)-type transistor sensitive and/or fan-out sensitive selective voltage binning (SVB) to improve SVB accuracy and, thereby product yield and reliability. In the methods, a process distribution for an integrated circuit chip design is divided into process windows, each associated with a corresponding performance range and a corresponding minimum supply voltage. First performance measurements are acquired from first performance monitors associated with first transistors on chips manufactured according to the design. Based on the first performance measurements, the chips are assigned to groups corresponding to the process windows. Second performance measurements are also be acquired from second performance monitors associated with second transistors, which are on the chips and which have either a different VT-type or a different maximum fan-out than the first transistors. Based on the second performance measurements, a determination is made as to whether chip group reassignment is warranted.

Threshold voltage (VT)-type transistor sensitive and/or fan-out sensitive selective voltage binning

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Essex Juntion, VT, United States of America

Jeanne P Bickford