Freescale Semiconductor,inc.

Nxp Usa, Inc.

Leonid Fleshel

Michael Priel

Anton Rozen

Sergey Sofer

Dan Kuzmin

Yoav Weizman

Roman Mostinski

Vladimir Nusimovich

David Dzebisashvili

There is provided a method, apparatus and integrated circuit for measuring a signal, the apparatus comprising a plurality of sample stages arranged in series, each sample stage comprising a delay element, and a sample element, wherein an input of the sample element is coupled to an output of the delay element, and a strobe line for controlling a sample time of the sample elements, the strobe line comprising a plurality of strobe delay elements arranged in series, wherein an output of each strobe delay element is coupled to one or more sample elements.

On-die signal measurement circuit and method

A register file module comprising at least one register array comprising a plurality of latch devices is described. The plurality of latch devices is arranged to individually provide memory bit-cells when the register file module is configured to operate in a first, functional operating mode, and at least one clock control component is arranged to receive a clock signal and to propagate the clock signal to the latch devices within the at least one register array. The register file module is configurable to operate in a second, scan mode in which the latch devices within the at least one register array are arranged into at least one scan chain. The at least one clock control component is arranged to propagate the clock signal to the latch devices within the at least one register array such that alternate latch devices within the at least one scan chain receive an inverted form of the clock signal.

Hold time aware register file module and method therefor

An electronic device may include a set of two or more scan chains and a buffer chain. Each of the scan chains includes a sequence of stateful elements connected in series, and each of the scan chains is arranged to hold a string having a length identical to the length of the respective scan chain. The strings of the scan chains are shifted in parallel from the scan chains into the memory unit and back from the memory unit into the respective scan chains. The store operation and the restore operation each include at least N0 elementary downstream shift operations. The set of scan chains includes a short chain and a detour chain, and the short chain has a length N1 which is shorter than N0. The set of scan chains further includes a buffer chain. The output end of the short chain is coupled to an input end of the buffer chain. The buffer chain is provided at least partly by the detour chain.

Electronic device and method for state retention

A method of detecting irregular high current flow within an integrated circuit (IC) device is described. The method comprises obtaining infrared (IR) emission information for the IC device, identifying at least one functional component within the IC device comprising a high current flow, based at least partly on the obtained IR emission information, obtaining IR emission information for at least one reference component within the IC device, and determining whether the high current flow of the at least one functional component comprises an irregular high current flow based at least partly on a comparison of respective IR emission information for the at least one functional component and the at least one reference component.

Method of detecting irregular current flow in an integrated circuit device and apparatus therefor

A system for on-die voltage difference measurement on a pass device comprises a first voltage controlled oscillator circuit having a first voltage control input connectable to a first terminal of the pass device; a second voltage controlled oscillator circuit having a second voltage control input connectable to a second terminal of the pass device; a first counter circuit arranged to count oscillation periods of a first output signal from the first voltage controlled oscillator circuit and to provide a stop signal when a predefined number of the oscillation periods of the first output signal is counted; and a second counter circuit arranged to count oscillation periods of a second output signal from the second voltage controlled oscillator circuit and to stop counting depending on the stop signal.

System and method for on-die voltage difference measurement on a pass device, and integrated circuit

A bypass capacitor circuit for an integrated circuit (IC) comprises one or more capacitive devices, each arranged in a segment of a seal ring area of a die, which comprises the IC. A method of providing a bypass capacitance for an IC comprises providing a semiconductor wafer device comprising a plurality of dies, each comprising an IC; arranging one or more capacitive devices in a seal ring area of at least one of the IC; dicing the semiconductor wafer device; in a test mode, for each of the one or more capacitive devices, enabling the capacitive device, determining an operability parameter value indicative of an operability of the capacitive device, and storing the operability parameter in a memory device; and in a normal operation mode, providing a bypass capacitance to the IC depending on a capacitance of one or more of the capacitive devices having an associated operability parameter value indicative of a non-defectiveness of the corresponding capacitive device.

Bypass capacitor circuit and method of providing a bypass capacitance for an integrated circuit die

A clock distribution module for a digital synchronous system is described. The clock distribution module comprising a first node arranged to comprise a clock signal comprising a propagation delay relative to a reference clock signal, at least one further node arranged to comprise a clock signal comprising a propagation delay relative to the reference clock signal corresponding to that of the first node, and a clock configuration module. The clock configuration module is arranged to receive at least one indication of clock skew between the first node and at least one further node of the clock distribution module, and to selectively couple the first node to the at least one further node based at least partly on the at least one indication of clock skew there between.

Clock distribution module, synchronous digital system and method therefor

A sequential logic circuit comprising a first latch component comprising a data input arranged to receive an input signal, a data output arranged to output a current logical state of the first latch component and a clock input arranged to receive a clock signal; the first latch component being arranged to comprise a transparent state upon the clock signal received thereby comprising a first logical state, and to comprise a latched state upon the clock signal received thereby comprising a second logical state, and a second latch component comprising a data input arranged to receive an input signal, a data output operably coupled to an output of the sequential logic circuit and arranged to output a current state of the second latch component and a clock input arranged to receive a clock signal; the second latch component being arranged to comprise a transparent state upon the clock signal received thereby comprising a second logical state, and to comprise a latched state upon the clock signal received thereby comprising a first logical state. The sequential logic circuit is arranged to operate in at least a first operating mode in which the data input of the first latch component and the data input of the second latch component are operably coupled to a first input of the sequential logic circuit, and in which the clock signals provided to the first and second latch components are such that a transition of the second latch component from a transparent state to a latched state is delayed relative to a corresponding transition of the first latch component from a transparent state to a latched state for a time period for receiving late data.

Sequential logic circuit and method of providing setup timing violation tolerance therefor

A method for compensating a timing signal with which an outputting of data states of at least one data signal is synchronised. The method comprises receiving a current set of data states and a next set of data states, identifying state transitions between the current set of data states and the next set of data states determining an amount of compensation to apply to the timing signal based at least partly on the state transitions identified between the current set of data states and the next set of data states, and applying the determined amount of compensation to the timing signal such that the compensation applies to the outputting of the next set of data states.

Method, integrated circuit and electronic device for compensating a timing signal based at least partly on determining a number of state transitions between a current set of data states and the next set of data states

An integrated circuit device comprising at least one voltage supply module arranged to receive at an input thereof at least one control signal and to provide at an output thereof a voltage signal in accordance with the received at least one control signal, and at least one control module comprising at least one feedback loop between the output of the at least one voltage supply module and the input of the at least one voltage supply module, and arranged to generate the at least one control signal based at least partly on the voltage level of the voltage signal output by the at least one voltage supply module. The at least one control module is further arranged to receive at an input thereof at least one instantaneous indication of a load current at the output of the at least one voltage supply module, and apply a compensation to the at least one control signal provided to the at least one voltage supply module based at least partly on the received at least one indication of the load current.

Integrated circuit device, voltage regulator module and method for compensating a voltage signal

An integrated circuit includes a plurality of power gating elements for controlling power applied to a first module which is in a powered off state, while a second module is in a powered on state, the second module being coupled to receive at least one signal from the first module when the first module is powered on. A a synchronization controller is provided for controlling the power gating elements to ramp up the power gated to the first module in order to power it up and, for a time while the power gated to the first module is below a first level, reducing the power gated to the second module, and for a time when the power gated to the first module is above the first level, increasing the power gated to the second module.

Integrated circuit and a method of power management of an integrated circuit

A method and a electronic circuit, the method includes: sending to a switching circuit, to a state retention power gating (SRPG) circuit and to a first power source a control signal indicating that the SRPG circuit should operate in a functional mode; coupling, by the switching circuit, a third power grid to a first power grid; supplying power from the first power source to the SRPG circuit via the first power grid, the switching circuit and the third power grid; supplying power from a second power source to a second circuit via a second power grid; sending to the switching circuit, to the SRPG circuit and to the first power source a control signal indicating that the SRPG circuit should operate in a state retention mode; coupling, by the switching circuit, the third power grid to the second power grid; supplying power from the second power source to the SRPG circuit via the second power grid, the switching circuit and the third power grid; supplying power from the second power source to the second circuit via the second power grid; and storing, by the SRPG state information.

Electronic circuit and method for state retention power gating

A device and a method for estimating a current; the method includes: setting an impedance of a power gating circuit to a measurement value; wherein the power gating circuit selectively provides power to a circuit of an integrated circuit; measuring, during a measurement period, an electrical parameter indicative of a current that flows through the power gating circuit; and reducing an impedance of the power gating circuit to a power provision value to reduce a voltage developed on the power gating circuit during a power provision period.

Device and method for current estimation

A device and a method for testing a connectivity between a first device and a second device, the method includes: writing, at a first frequency and in a serial manner, a first test word to a source boundary scan register; writing a content of the source boundary scan register, at a second frequency and in a parallel manner, to a target boundary scan register; wherein the second frequency is higher than the first frequency; reading the content of the target boundary scan register; wherein the source and target boundary scan registers are selected from a first boundary scan register of the first device and a second boundary scan register of the second device; and evaluating a connectivity between the first and second device in response to a relationship between the first test word and the content of the target boundary scan register.

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Hertzelia, Israel

Leonid Fleshel