Semiconductor Solutions
Scanimetrics offers innovative solutions for semiconductor testing and chip-to-chip communications.
Our patented technology allows non-contact probing of chips and 3D packaged devices, chip debugging and verification, non-contact, high-speed chip-to-chip communications, and Through-Silicon Vias (TSV) replacement. We can also customize our industry-leading semiconductor probing and interconnect solutions to your unique applications.
Test Technology for Semiconductor Wafers and 3D Packaged Devices
Scanimetrics offers a revolutionary non-contact, “virtual probe” testing technology for the semiconductor industry. WiTAP™ — Wireless Test Access Port — is a leading-edge family of testing products that enables a new level of chip-scale integration benefiting the entire product chain, from design and fabrication to test and packaging. Our technology enables chipmakers to improve the performance of their devices and cut manufacturing costs by 50 percent or more.
Our patented WiTAP™ (Wireless Test Access Port) technology addresses the needs of advanced System-in-Package (SiP) chip manufacturers to test and identify defective devices from the very beginning of the assembly process, not just at the end. WiTAP™ dramatically improves the reliability of known-good-die (KGD), therefore reducing the cost of multi-chip or system-in-package (SiP) components. The novel method can significantly reduce manufacturing costs of chips which end up in consumer goods such as laptops, mobile phones and PDAs.
By utilizing radio frequency (RF) transceivers embedded in the circuit to be tested and a complementary set of transceivers in the “virtual probe card,” WiTAP™ executes proximity testing of SiP devices across the gap between the probe card and the device under test (DUT). This enables chipmakers to test from the onset of SiP assembly and after the addition of each new chip. If and when a bad die is found or an assembly defect is detected the SiP package can be re-worked or eliminated before assembly is completed, ultimately saving millions of dollars in both chip costs and manufacturing time. Power is provided by a pair of traditional probe needles.
Scanimetrics is currently engaged with several major semiconductor manufacturers incorporating the WiTAP™ technology into their next generation SiP products. Working with major chip manufacturers as implementation partners, we are developing additional products that will address specific semiconductor market sectors where we see strong opportunities.
Low-Power High-Speed Chip-to-Chip Communication
UltraI/O™ is a high-speed, low-power data communication technology developed to solve chip-interface bottlenecks by increasing data transfer rates while reducing I/O power consumption and chip surface area. Performance is much better than capacitive coupling and traditional wireline solutions. UltraI/O™ uses the same transceiver and antenna technology as WiTAP™.
WiTAP™ Technology Benefits
- Eliminate the mechanical constraints imposed by contact methods, allowing test costs to scale with Moore’s Law
- Gain greater flexibility than ever in reducing chip size and add more functionality onto the same chip “real estate”
- Increase the speed of probe testing with the higher-bandwidth I/Os – signal bandwidth is no longer limited to several hundred MHz
- Boost chip manufacturing yield and productivity by reducing the amount of damaged chips caused by physical contact-based probe techniques
Chip-to-Chip Communications Services
- Wireless TSV - The Scanimetrics wireless TSV communicates without needing to create TSV of elements through the chips, eliminating the need for these coslty manufacturing steps.
- UltraI/O™ - UltraI/O™ chips are smaller than traditional I/O cells and offer high-scalability. These chips require fewer I/Os for the same speed and offer low power consumption.
