A New Built-In Defect-Based Testing Technique to Achieve Zero Defects in the Automotive Environment

Efficient screening procedures for the control of the defectivity are vital to limit early failures especially in critical automotive applications. Traditional strategies based on burn-in and in-line tests are able to provide the required level of reliability but they are expensive and time consuming. This paper presents a novel built-in reliability testing methodology to screen out gate oxide and crystal related defects in Lateral Diffused MOS transistors. The proposed technique is based on an embedded circuitry that includes control logic, high voltage generation, and leakage current monitoring. The concept, advantages and the circuit for the proposed test procedure are described in very detail and illustrated by circuit simulation.