An Optimized Seed-based Pseudo-random Test Pattern Generator: Theory and Implementation

Abstract

This paper presents a novel seed-based test pattern generator (SB-TPG). The core of SB-TPG is a seed sequence generator. A coverage-driven seed generation algorithm has been proposed to generate the optimized seeds. The test sequence generated by SB-TPG is a single input change (SIC) sequence that can significantly reduce test power for test-per-clock built-in self-test (BIST). Further, seed-masking technique has been put forward to filter those power-consuming seeds, thus reducing test power for test-per-scan BIST. Experimental results show that SB-TPG can achieve high fault coverage with short test length, low power and small hardware overhead.