Functional Testing of Semiconductor Random Access Memories

Abstract

This paper presents an overview of the problem of testing semiconductor random access memories (RAMs). An important aspect of this test procedure is the detection of permanent faults that cause the memory to function incorrectly. Functional-level fault models are very useful for describing a wide variety of RAM faults. Several fault models are &scussed throughout the paper, including the stuck-at-0/1 faults, coupled-cell faults, and single-cell pattern-sensitive faults. Test procedures for these fault models are presented and their fault coverage and execution times are discussed. The paper is intended for the general computer scmnce audience and presupposes no background in the hardware testing area.