Sandisk Technologies Inc.

Nyi Nyi Thein

Loc Tu

Charles Moana Hook

James Floyd Cardosa

Ian Arthur Myers

Kirubakaran Periyannan

Dat Tran

Techniques and apparatuses are provided for detecting a short circuit between pins of an integrated circuit package. The tested pins can be adjacent or non-adjacent on the package. Various types of short circuits can be detected, including resistive, diode and capacitive short circuits. Additionally, short circuits of a single pin can be tested, including a short circuit to a power supply or to ground. The test circuit includes a current mirror, where the input path has a first path connected to a first pin and a parallel second path connected to a second pin. A comparator is connected to the output path of the current mirror. By controlling the on and off states of transistors in the first and second paths, and evaluating the voltage of the output path, the short circuits can be detected.

Circuit for detecting pin-to-pin leaks of an integrated circuit package

A memory card and methods for testing memory cards are disclosed herein. The memory card has a test interface that allows testing large numbers of memory cards together. Each memory card may have a serial data I/O contact and a test select contact. The memory cards may only send data via the serial data I/O contact when selected, which may allow many memory cards to be connected to the same serial data line during test. Moreover, existing test socket boards may be used without adding additional external circuitry. Thus, cost effective testing of memory cards is provided. In some embodiments, the test interface allows for a serial built in self test (BIST).

Memory card test interface

Techniques are disclosed herein for automatically self-disabling a memory die in the event that a programmable element on the memory die for indicating whether the memory die is defective cannot be trusted. Memory die are provided with chip enable circuitry to allow particular memory die to be disabled. If the programmable element can be trusted, the state of the programmable element is provided to the chip enable circuitry to enable/disable the memory die based on the state. However, if the programmable element cannot be trusted, then the chip enable circuitry may automatically disable the memory die. This provides a greater yield for multi-chip memory packages because packages having memory die with a programmable element that cannot be trusted can still be used.

Growing community of inventors

Lathrop, CA, United States of America

Nyi Nyi Thein