The Quest for Test: Will Redundancy Cover All?

Till now Test has been the cornerstone and final verification step to assure that products are working correct and reliably. We've seen the evolution from functional to structural test and from pass/fail to data concentric test. The growing device and integration complexity causes the test cost do become a dominant factor of the final product cost. This is in conflict with the requirement for always cheaper and better electronics. So what can we do to resolve this conflict? We have seen the evolution from integrated devices to integrated circuits to integrated systems. With ever shrinking transistor dimensions and transistors virtually becoming "for free" the question arises:" do we still need Test or can redundancy cover all?" Integrating systems means further combining hardware, software, analog and digital functionality. Each of these domains as well as there interactions and interfaces poses particular design and test issues. How can we address these and still come up with a cost conscious and reliably working product, thereby also meeting power consumption requirements? Can redundancy tackle all? This presentation will address the questions raised and present a viewpoint on the Future for Test.