Abstract: Exemplary systems, methods and computer-accessible mediums for encrypting at least one integrated circuit (IC) can include determining, using an interference graph, at least one location for a proposed insertion of at least one gate in or at the at least one IC, and inserting the gate(s) into the IC(s) at the location(s). The interference graph can be constructed based at least in part on an effect of the location(s) on at least one further location of the IC(s).

Abstract: Exemplary system, method and computer accessible medium that can transform a circuit by selecting at least one scan cell as an interface register and inserting a shadow register into each interface register. Operations can be shifted to load and unload at least one scan cell in the circuit. An operation can be launched in at least one of the interface registers and in a first set of scan cells. A capture operation can be performed in a second set of scan cells. An operation can be restored in at least one interface register by transferring data from at least one shadow register.

Abstract: Exemplary systems, methods and computer-accessible mediums can encrypting a circuit by determining at least one location to insert at least one gate in the circuit using a fault analysis, and inserting the at least one gate in at least one section of the at least one location. The determination can include an iterative procedure that can be a greedy iterative procedure. The determination can be based on an effect of the particular location on a maximum number of outputs of the circuit.

Abstract: A ring oscillator (RO) based Design-For-Trust (DFTr) technique is described. Functional paths of integrated circuit (IC) are included in one or more embedded ROs by (1) selecting a path in the IC, based on path selection criteria, that has one or more unsecured gates, and (2) embedding one or more ROs on the IC until a stop condition is met. An input pattern to activate embedded RO is determined. Further, a golden frequency which is a frequency at which the embedded RO oscillates, and a frequency range of the embedded RO are determined. A Trojan in the IC may be detected by activating the embedded RO (by applying the input pattern), measuring a frequency at which the embedded RO oscillates, and determining whether or not a Trojan is present based on whether or not the measured frequency of the RO is within a predetermined operating frequency range of the RO.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure include apparatus, methods, and computer-accessible medium for a toggle-masking procedure configured to mask, e.g., most or all the unknown x's and minimizing the over-masked known bits for clustered distribution of unknown bits. According to certain exemplary embodiments, it is possible to obtain previous masking information regarding the scan chain(s) associated with a previous cycle, and mask the scan chain(s) for a present cycle based on the previous masking information.

Abstract: Exemplary apparatus, methods, and computer-accessible medium can be provided for transforming a circuit. For example, it is possible to select, from the circuit, at least one scan cell which includes a first multiplexer coupled to a first flip-flop. A second flip-flop and a second multiplexer can be inserted in the circuit. The first multiplexer can be coupled as an input to the second flip-flop, and the second multiplexer can be coupled to the output of the first flip-flop and the second flip-flop.

Abstract: Exemplary system, method and computer-accessible medium for testing a multi-core chip can be provided which can have and/or utilize a plurality of identical cores. This can be performed by comparing each core with as many as at least the number of spare cores plus 1 using a comparator; the number of comparators can equal the total number of cores multiplied by one-half the number of spare cores plus 1. A mismatch between two cores can identify at least one of the two cores as defective and a perfect match between two cores can identify both cores as not defective. The multi-core chip can fail the test if the number of defective cores can be greater than the number of spare cores.

Abstract: Exemplary system, method and computer accessible medium that can transform a circuit by selecting at least one scan cell as an interface register and inserting a shadow register into each interface register. Operations can be shifted to load and unload at least one scan cell in the circuit. An operation can be launched in at least one of the interface registers and in a first set of scan cells. A capture operation can be performed in a second set of scan cells. An operation can be restored in at least one interface register by transferring data from at least one shadow register.

Abstract: Exemplary apparatus, methods, and computer-accessible medium can be provided for transforming a circuit. For example, it is possible to select, from the circuit, at least one scan cell which includes a first multiplexer coupled to a first flip-flop. A second flip-flop and a second multiplexer can be inserted in the circuit. The first multiplexer can be coupled as an input to the second flip-flop, and the second multiplexer can be coupled to the output of the first flip-flop and the second flip-flop.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure include apparatus, methods, and computer-accessible medium for a toggle-masking procedure configured to mask, e.g., most or all the unknown x's and minimizing the over-masked known bits for clustered distribution of unknown bits. According to certain exemplary embodiments, it is possible to obtain previous masking information regarding the scan chain(s) associated with a previous cycle, and mask the scan chain(s) for a present cycle based on the previous masking information.

Abstract: A ring oscillator (RO) based Design-For-Trust (DFTr) technique is described. Functional paths of integrated circuit (IC) are included in one or more embedded ROs by (1) selecting a path in the IC, based on path selection criteria, that has one or more unsecured gates, and (2) embedding one or more ROs on the IC until a stop condition is met. An input pattern to activate embedded RO is determined. Further, a golden frequency which is a frequency at which the embedded RO oscillates, and a frequency range of the embedded RO are determined. A Trojan in the IC may be detected by activating the embedded RO (by applying the input pattern), measuring a frequency at which the embedded RO oscillates, and determining whether or not a Trojan is present based on whether or not the measured frequency of the RO is within a predetermined operating frequency range of the RO.

Abstract: Exemplary method, computer-accessible medium, test architecture, and system can be provided for a partial-scan test of at least one integrated circuit. For example, it is possible to obtain a plurality of test cubes using a first combinational automatic test pattern generation (ATPG) and identify at least one flip-flop of the integrated circuit using the test cubes to convert to a non-scan flip-flop and facilitate the partial-scan test to utilize the cubes without a utilization of a sequential ATPG or a second combinational ATPG.

Abstract: Exemplary method, computer-accessible medium, and test configuration can be provided for testing at least one flip-flop. For example, the exemplary test configuration can include at least one scan-out channel having a plurality of regions and a plurality of compactors associated with the plurality of regions.

Abstract: The circuit and method for increasing the scan cell observability of response compactors is based on manipulation of x distribution in responses prior to taking them through a compactor. An x-align block is capable of delaying scan chains by judiciously computed values, and thus aligning x's within the same slices. The x-alignment is effected in the insertion of proper control data to the generic x-align hardware. As a result, fewer scan cells are masked due to response x's into other cells, reflecting into enhanced test quality. An ILP formulation can be used to identify the delay assignment that leads to the maximum number of observable scan cells. Alternatively, a computationally efficient greedy heuristic can be used to attain near-optimal results in reasonable run-time. Thus, the x-align block enhances the effectiveness of response compactors and reaps high test quality, even in the dense presence of response x's.

Abstract: The circuit and method providing dynamic scan chain partitioning delivers peak power reduction by dynamically partitioning scan chains into multiple groups, wherein transitions are equally distributed among these multiple groups. For each test pattern, a particular partitioning that leads to the even partitioning of the transitions is computed by analyzing the transition distribution of the pattern. The scan chain partitioning is formulated using an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) and an efficient greedy heuristic. The computed information is loaded into the reconfigurable scan chain partitioning hardware during the capture window. The partitioning hardware is composed of controllable clock gating logic, which is reconfigured on a per pattern basis, wherein the reconfiguration is effected by only utilizing the existing scan channels. The reconfigurability delivers a solution that is test set independent.

Abstract: The circuit for boosting encoding capabilities of test stimulus decompressors is utilized in conjunction with a stimulus decompressor. The circuit, called align-encode is inserted between the decompressor and internal. The scan chains feed into a response compactor. The align-encode circuit is used to judiciously manipulate care bit distribution. Re-configurability of the align-encode circuit allows for this manipulation via delay cells with the align-encode circuit, whose length can be adjusted on a per scan chain per test pattern basis by loading the align-encode circuit with proper control data. Based on the stimulus decompressor characteristics, the scan chains are delayed in such a way that an unencodable pattern becomes encodable when using the align-encode circuit.

Abstract: The circuit and method for increasing the scan cell observability of response compactors is based on manipulation of x distribution in responses prior to taking them through a compactor. An x-align block is capable of delaying scan chains by judiciously computed values, and thus aligning x's within the same slices. The x-alignment is effected in the insertion of proper control data to the generic x-align hardware. As a result, fewer scan cells are masked due to response x's into other cells, reflecting into enhanced test quality. An ILP formulation can be used to identify the delay assignment that leads to the maximum number of observable scan cells. Alternatively, a computationally efficient greedy heuristic can be used to attain near-optimal results in reasonable run-time. Thus, the x-align block enhances the effectiveness of response compactors and reaps high test quality, even in the dense presence of response x's.

Abstract: The circuit and method providing dynamic scan chain partitioning delivers peak power reduction by dynamically partitioning scan chains into multiple groups, wherein transitions are equally distributed among these multiple groups. For each test pattern, a particular partitioning that leads to the even partitioning of the transitions is computed by analyzing the transition distribution of the pattern. The scan chain partitioning is formulated using an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) and an efficient greedy heuristic. The computed information is loaded into the reconfigurable scan chain partitioning hardware during the capture window. The partitioning hardware is composed of controllable clock gating logic, which is reconfigured on a per pattern basis, wherein the reconfiguration is effected by only utilizing the existing scan channels. The reconfigurability delivers a solution that is test set independent.

Abstract: The circuit for boosting encoding capabilities of test stimulus decompressors is utilized in conjunction with a stimulus decompressor. The circuit, called align-encode is inserted between the decompressor and internal. The scan chains feed into a response compactor. The align-encode circuit is used to judiciously manipulate care bit distribution. Re-configurability of the align-encode circuit allows for this manipulation via delay cells with the align-encode circuit, whose length can be adjusted on a per scan chain per test pattern basis by loading the align-encode circuit with proper control data. Based on the stimulus decompressor characteristics, the scan chains are delayed in such a way that an unencodable pattern becomes encodable when using the align-encode circuit.