Emerging trends in VLSI test and diagnosis

As the move to very deep submicron VLSI devices pushes the threshold of semiconductor technology, conventional test and diagnosis methods become inadequate and costly. The new level of complexity driven by core-based system-chips demands that designers alter the way they approach chip development in order to keep up with diminishing time-to-market requirements and stay within budgets. Embedded test enables the production of higher-quality devices in less time. The use of embedded test raises margins and significantly reduces the time required for system verification, test and debug. This paper addresses discusses embedded test technology and analyzes its impact on time-to-market, product quality and cost.