Patents by Inventor David E. Kloster

David E. Kloster has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Wide area soft defect localization
    Patent number: 7884633
    Abstract: Various apparatus and methods of testing a semiconductor chip for soft defects are disclosed. In one aspect, a method of testing a semiconductor chip that has a surface and plural circuit structures positioned beneath the surface is provided. An external stimulus is applied to a series of fractional portions of the surface to perturb portions of the plural circuit structures such that at least one of the series of fractional portions is smaller than another of the series of fractional portions. The semiconductor chip is caused to perform a test pattern during the application of external stimulus to each of the fractional portions to determine if a soft defect exists in any of the series of fractional portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2011
    Assignee: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
    Inventors: Ronald M. Potok, Rama R. Goruganthu, David E. Kloster, Norman E. Rhodes
  • Wide Area Soft Defect Localization
    Publication number: 20090302880
    Abstract: Various apparatus and methods of testing a semiconductor chip for soft defects are disclosed. In one aspect, a method of testing a semiconductor chip that has a surface and plural circuit structures positioned beneath the surface is provided. An external stimulus is applied to a series of fractional portions of the surface to perturb portions of the plural circuit structures such that at least one of the series of fractional portions is smaller than another of the series of fractional portions. The semiconductor chip is caused to perform a test pattern during the application of external stimulus to each of the fractional portions to determine if a soft defect exists in any of the series of fractional portions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2008
    Publication date: December 10, 2009
    Inventors: Ronald M. Potok, Rama R. Goruganthu, David E. Kloster, Norman E. Rhodes