Low Power Reduced Pin Count Test Methodology

Abstract

This paper explores the savings in power achieved using an I/O gating and Reduced Pin Count Test (RPCT) technique during manufacturing test. Since I/O pads consume significant power, preventing them from toggling during test will bring about a corresponding savings in power. The paper describes a fully automated RPCT methodology for low power that includes insertion of the RPCT and I/O gating logic and test generation. Based on simulation of the ATPG patterns, we show that the power consumed during scan test can be reduced significantly.