Wafer Scale Transfer of 2D Materials, Graphene


A new technical paper titled "Assessment of Wafer-Level Transfer Techniques of Graphene with Respect to Semiconductor Industry Requirements" was published by researchers at Infineon Technologies AG, RWTH Aachen University, Protemics, and Advantest. Abstract "Graphene is a promising candidate for future electronic applications. Manufacturing graphene-based electronic devices typically requ... » read more

Screening For Silent Data Errors


Engineers are beginning to understand the causes of silent data errors (SDEs) and the data center failures they cause, both of which can be reduced by increasing test coverage and boosting inspection on critical layers. Silent data errors are so named because if engineers don’t look for them, then they don’t know they exist. Unlike other kinds of faulty behaviors, these errors also can c... » read more

Industrial Solutions For Machine-Learning-Enabled Yield Optimization And Test


This article summarizes the content of a paper developed and presented by Advantest at ETS 2022. By Sonny Banwari and Matthias Sauer According to market research firm Gartner, Inc., in assessing the completion rate of data science projects, as well as the bottom-line value they generate for their companies, only between 15 and 20 percent of these projects are ever completed. Moreover, of ... » read more

Silent Data Corruption


Defects can creep into chip manufacturing from anywhere, but the problem is getting worse at advanced nodes and in advanced packages where reduced pin access can make testing much more difficult. Ira Leventhal, vice president of U.S. Applied Research and Technology at Advantest America, talks about what’s causing these so-called silent data errors, how to find them, and why it now requires ma... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


The more than 1,400 attendees at this week’s IEDM, which celebrated the 75th anniversary of the transistor, were clearly focused on making the next 75 years of semiconductors even more remarkable than the last. Intel, Samsung, TSMC, STMicroelectronics, GlobalFoundries and imec announced breakthrough devices, materials, and even integration approaches. These included: Intel showcased adva... » read more

Adopting Predictive Maintenance On Fab Tools


Predictive maintenance, based on more and better sensor data from semiconductor manufacturing equipment, can reduce downtime in the fab and ultimately cut costs compared with regularly scheduled maintenance. But implementing this approach is non-trivial, and it can be disruptive to well-honed processes and flows. Not performing maintenance quickly enough can result in damage to wafers or the... » read more

High Voltage Testing Races Ahead


Voltage requirements are increasing, especially for the EV market. Even devices that might be considered relatively low voltage, such as display drivers, are now pushing past established baselines. While working with high voltages is nothing new — many engineers can recall yellow caution tape in their workplaces — the sheer number and variety of new requirements have made testing at high... » read more

A Customized Low-Cost Approach For S-Parameter Validation Of ATE Test Fixtures


This article summarizes the content of a paper jointly developed and presented by Advantest and Infineon at TestConX 2022. Device under test (DUT) fixtures for ATE systems pose several verification challenges. Users need to measure the DUT test fixture quickly and easily, while making sure the measurements mimic the ATE-to-test-fixture interface performance and determining how to handle DUT ... » read more

Week In Review: Semiconductor Manufacturing, Test


With the European Council’s adoption of its negotiating mandate for the European Chips Act, member states and the Czech Presidency of the Council have reached a critical milestone in supporting Europe’s efforts to advance manufacturing and supply of critical components, while bolstering R&D capacities for development of next-generation semiconductor innovations, according to SEMI. Ch... » read more

Week In Review: Semiconductor Manufacturing, Test


U.S. President Joe Biden appears ready to increase pressure on Japan and the Netherlands to help block the flow of advanced chip technology to China, where it can be used to develop cutting-edge weapons. "You will see Japan and Netherlands follow our lead," U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told CNBC. Japan plans to budget Â¥350 billion ($2.38 billion) in a research collaboration with th... » read more

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