Abstract: A light emitting device comprises a gate electrode, a channel comprising a molecule for electrically stimulated optical emission, wherein the molecule is disposed within an effective range of the gate electrode, a source coupled to a first end of the channel injecting electrons into the channel, and a drain coupled to a second end of the channel injecting holes into the channel.

Abstract: A method and system for testing an integrated circuit. The method comprises the steps of obtaining periodic optical emissions over a defined period of time and from a defined area of an integrated circuit operating with time-varying internal currents, and time resolving said emissions by photon timing to estimate the number of switching events occurring in said defined area over said defined period. The method further comprises the steps of providing an optical emission model, and comparing the optical emissions from the area of the integrated circuit with the optical emission model to determine whether any of a group of defined conditions are present on the integrated circuit. For example, this test may be used to detect local power supply loading under high power density operation, or to derive changes in mobility due to heating effects.

Abstract: A light emitting device comprises a gate electrode, a channel comprising a molecule for electrically stimulated optical emission, wherein the molecule is disposed within an effective range of the gate electrode, a source coupled to a first end of the channel injecting electrons into the channel, and a drain coupled to a second end of the channel injecting holes into the channel.

Abstract: A system and method for determining the location of a particular device on an integrated circuit chip is described. The system and method utilize apparatus for detecting the emission of light during switching events of devices in the circuit during the circuit's processing of an input calculated to actuate the device whose location is desired. Light emissions from the circuit can be temporally and spatially indexed so as to allow deduction, in combination with the a priori knowledge of the logical operation of the circuit, of the location of the desired element. In another embodiment of the invention, a series of images of the circuit can be accumulated, representing the circuit's response to a series of different input signals, each input signal being designed to result in the switching of the desired element. The series of images can be compared to determine the location of the desired element.

Abstract: A method and system for testing an integrated circuit. The method comprises the steps of obtaining periodic optical emissions over a defined period of time and from a defined area of an integrated circuit operating with time-varying internal currents, and time resolving said emissions by photon timing to estimate the number of switching events occurring in said defined area over said defined period. The method further comprises the steps of providing an optical emission model, and comparing the optical emissions from the area of the integrated circuit with the optical emission model to determine whether any of a group of defined conditions are present on the integrated circuit. For example, this test may be used to detect local power supply loading under high power density operation, or to derive changes in mobility due to heating effects.

Abstract: A method for processing time-resolved optical emission data (“waveforms”) comprises processing both a first and a second waveform, and analyzing the results. The processing uses a substantial portion of the waveform and not merely the peaks of the waveform. A system which implements the method, and a computer readable medium which contains instructions for implementing the method, are also disclosed. The embodiments disclose methods for analyzing time-resolved optical emission data using correlation and/or transform techniques on the optical waveforms to extract timing information. The techniques offer more accurate results than direct examination of the waveforms and are additionally useful in tests having high noise or low numbers of detected photons. The techniques allow significant automation and the results lend themselves to graphic display.

Abstract: A system and method for determining the location of a particular device on an integrated circuit chip is described. The system and method utilize apparatus for detecting the emission of light during switching events of devices in the circuit during the circuit's processing of an input calculated to actuate the device whose location is desired. Light emissions from the circuit can be temporally and spatially indexed so as to allow deduction, in combination with the a priori knowledge of the logical operation of the circuit, of the location of the desired element. In another embodiment of the invention, a series of images of the circuit can be accumulated, representing the circuit's response to a series of different input signals, each input signal being designed to result in the switching of the desired element. The series of images can be compared to determine the location of the desired element.

Abstract: Methods for the ready identification of dynamic defects using switching induced light emission from CMOS gates in complex integrated circuits such as microprocessors are described. The rapid increase in the complexity of logic circuits means that practical gate level identification of the sources of dynamic errors will require methods other than the gate by gate tracing of every possible path taken by a given set of instructions. The methods described here are based on the ability of picosecond imaging circuit analysis to detect the switching activity of every gate of a complex circuit in a single, passive measurement, and the ability of data processing today to compare large two- and three-dimensional files.

Abstract: A system and method to reduce, compress, and analyze the raw data obtained in an apparatus which measures the time-resolved emission of light from an operating integrated circuit is described. The system and method reduce the storage requirements for a tool which measures this emission, and can also reduce the computational time for analysis of the data.

Abstract: Intrinsic, transient optical emission from a CMOS integrated circuit is used to determine the internal switching of such a circuit including the temporal evolution of its logic states. By joining an appropriate optical microscope to a suitable, photon counting, multichannel optical detector which is capable of time resolution better than 100 psec, and a spatial resolution of better than 60 microns, full temporal information, including the relative phases of switching events, can be obtained from many devices in a circuit simultaneously. The time and spatial resolution are suitable for analyzing timing problems in present and future sub-micron-scale CMOS integrated circuits with switching speeds up to at least 10 GHz. The invention comprises a combination of an optical microscope and a detector capable of providing optical waveforms and/or spatial images of the light emitted during electrical switching by the individual devices which comprise an integrated circuit.