Topic: Faults In VLSI

Presented By
Dr. Pradyut Sarkar
Associate Professor(CSE)
MAKAUT
BASIC CONCEPTS OF FAULT DETECTION:
•Fault detection in a logic circuit is carried out by applying a sequence of tests and observing the
resulting outputs.
•A test is an input combination that specifies the expected response that a fault-free
circuit should produce. If the observed response is different from the expected response, a fault is present
in the circuit.
•The aim of testing at the gate level is to verify that each logic gate in the circuit is functioning properly
and the interconnections are good.
•As indicated above, a test detects a fault in a circuit if and only if the output produced by the circuit in
the presence of the fault is different from the observed output when the fault is not present.

C=a.b
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 Defects, Faults, Errors and Failures
• Defect: An unintended difference between the implemented hardware and
its intended design
• Fault: A representation of a “defect” at abstracted functional level
– May or may not cause a problem

• Error: Manifestation of a fault that results in incorrect circuit (system)

outputs or states
– Caused by faults

• Failure: Deviation of a circuit or system from its specified behavior

– Fails to do what it should do
– Caused by an error
• Defect ---> Fault ---> Error ---> Failure Fault
model
Defect, Fault, and Error

Example
Defect: b short to ground
Fault: signal b stuck-at 0
Error: a=1, b=1, output c=0 (correct output c=1)
No Error when a=0 or b=0

a c
b

Fault model.4
 Stuck-At Fault Model
•The most common model used for logical faults is the single stuck-at fault. It assumes that a fault in a
logic gate results in one of its inputs or the output is fixed at either a logic 0 (stuck-at-0) or at logic 1
(stuck-at-1)
•Example: the A input of the NAND gate is s-a-1. Thus, AB=01 can be considered as the test for the A
input s-a-1, since there is a difference between the output of the fault-free and faulty gate.
 Bridging Fault Model
Bridging Faults are caused by physical shorts between two (or more) signal lines. All the lines
involved in a bridging fault have the same logic value. Only Single Bridging Fault (SBF)
between any pair of lines has been considered and it has been assumed that only a single pair of lines
is faulty at any time. The logical effect of such a fault may be of classical AND or OR type, as
described in Fig.1 and Table 1.
x
zx

Z(x,y)

y zy
TABLE I: Logical Effect of Bridging Faults
Fig. 1: Bridging Fault between
Input Values AND Bridging OR Bridging
two lines x and y
X Y ZX ZY ZX ZY
0 0 0 0 0 0
0 1 0 0 1 1
1 0 0 0 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1
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Basic Concept of Testing

Testing: To tell whether a circuit is good or bad

VDD

0 0
0
0 0/1
0
Why Studying Testing?
Economics!
Reduce test cost (enhance profit)
Automatic test equipment (ATE) is
extremely expensive
Shorten time-to-market
Market dominating or sharing
Guarantee IC quality and reliability
 Principle of Testing
Input Patterns(ATPG) Output Response
Circuit
1011 under 1001
1100 0011
1010 Test 1010
(CUT)
Stored
Correct Comparator
Response
Test Result

Testing typically consists of Applying set of test stimuli (input patterns, test vectors) to inputs of
circuit under test (CUT), and Analyzing output responses
 Is VLSI a good career?
 VLSI field is highly technical and completely based on electronics
engineering.
 Candidates with a background in electronics engineering can get into
semiconductor industries because it requires a minimum of
BE/BTech/BS in ECE/EEE as a necessary qualification.
 However, Computer Science/IT engineers try for some specific jobs,
with good knowledge of digital fundamentals and software
programming. You always need SoCs and embedded systems to design
the robots!
 VLSI Expertises are always in high demand in the fast-changing chip
designing industry. There are over 150 companies catering to this
industry, including big names like Texas Instruments, Infineon,
Freescale Semiconductor, Cadence, HCL, Intel, Lucent, Motorola,
Philips Semiconductor, Qualcomm, Sasken, Conexant, Wipro and TCS
 VLSI companies typically hire at M.Tech levels for VLSI design
positions, candidates with good fundamentals in electronics, electrical
or computer science engineering can find positions in areas such as
testing and debugging of VLSI chips.
 How to become a VLSI engineer? What are the industry’s
skill requirements to be a VLSI engineer?
“Without sharpen your weapon; standing on the battlefield would not increase
your chance of winning.”
1. Basic knowledge of digital electronics is a prerequisite.
2. Knowledge in VHDL(VHSIC),Verilogm Assebmly
Language, Arduino
3. It’s also necessary to be well versed in OOPs concepts
and CMOS concepts.
4. Some scripting language skill like Python , PERL
5. I have just outlined the personal attributes that are highly
required for these jobs. But it does not mean that only these
attributes are enough to get into the industry and perform
well. If you really want to differentiate yourself from others
and perform outstandingly, you need to be a good team
player, flexible, knowledgeable, hard-working, positive, and
energetic, irrespective of the work/job that you do.

“No Parking. No Halt. Success Non Stop

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 Planning
“Plans are of little importance, but
planning is essential.”

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Thanks
!
Any Questions?

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