Device for measuring integrated circuit current and method of measuring integrated circuit current using the device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10401397-B2
Application number	US-201414174375-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 6, 2014
Priority date	Feb 7, 2013
Publication date	Sep 3, 2019
Grant date	Sep 3, 2019

Abstract

A method of extracting an Integrated Circuit (IC) current is provided. The method includes generating a transfer function value by using a voltage measured in a node nearest an input terminal of the IC, substituting the generated transfer function value for a reverse fast Fourier transform function, so as to extract the IC voltage, and extracting the IC current from the extracted IC voltage through a simulation in a time domain.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of extracting an integrated circuit (IC) current using an IC current extracting device, the IC current extracting device electrically connected to a board provided with an IC, the method comprising:
determining a position of a de-coupling capacitor nearest to an input terminal of the IC as a measurement point;
measuring a voltage at the measurement point after de-coupling capacitors are removed, wherein the de-coupling capacitor nearest to the input terminal of the IC is one of the removed de-coupling capacitors;
determining the measured voltage as an input voltage;
generating an output voltage based on an on-die capacitance (ODC) and an on-die resistance (ODR) of the IC, and S-parameter information of the board;
generating a transfer function value based on the input voltage and the output voltage, wherein the transfer function value is generated by a transfer function defined based on a noise level included in the measured voltage;
performing a reverse fast Fourier transform function for the generated transfer function value so as to extract the IC voltage;
extracting an IC current by executing a computer simulation of a time domain based on the extracted IC voltage;
extracting a voltage of the board by using the extracted IC current; and
determining a power distribution network of the board based on the extracted IC current and the extracted voltage.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the transfer function value is generated based on a ratio of the input voltage to the output voltage when the input voltage and the output voltage are greater than the noise level.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the ODC and the ODR of the IC are measured by a two-port shunt thru method.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the transfer function value is any one of a first transfer function value, a second transfer function value and third transfer function value, the first transfer function value is defined as a transfer function value based on the S-parameter information using a reflection coefficient between a source and a load, the second transfer function value is defined as a transfer function value based on the time domain, and the third transfer function value is defined as any one of the second transfer function value and 1 according to a preset condition.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4 ,
wherein the preset condition includes:
a first condition in which the input voltage is compared with the output voltage; and
a second condition in which a preset probe noise level is compared with the input voltage or the output voltage, and

wherein the preset probe noise level is a noise generated in a process of measuring the measured voltage in a node using a probe.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as the second transfer function value when the input voltage is greater than the output voltage and the preset probe noise level.

7. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as 1 when the input voltage is greater than the output voltage, and is equal to or smaller than the preset probe noise level.

8. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as the second transfer function value when the input voltage is equal to or smaller than the output voltage, and is greater than the preset probe noise level.

9. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as 1 when the input voltage is equal to or smaller than the output voltage and the preset probe noise level.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising generating a database using the extracted IC current.

11. A device for extracting an integrated circuit (IC) current, the device provided on a board, using at least one processor, the device comprising:
the at least one processor configured to:
determine a position of a de-coupling capacitor nearest to an input terminal of the IC as a measurement point,
measure a voltage at the measurement point after de-coupling capacitors are removed, wherein the de-coupling capacitor nearest to the input terminal of the IC is one of the removed de-coupling capacitors,
determine the measured voltage as an input voltage,
generate an output voltage based on an on-die capacitance (ODC) and an on-die resistance (ODR) of the IC, and S-parameter information of the board,
generate a transfer function value based on the input voltage and the output voltage, wherein the transfer function value is generated by a transfer function defined according to a noise level included in the measured voltage,
perform a reverse fast Fourier transform function for the generated transfer function value so as to extract the IC voltage,
extract an IC current by executing a computer simulation of a time domain based on the extracted IC voltage,
extract a voltage of the board by using the extracted IC current, and
determine a power distribution network of the board based on the extracted IC current and the extracted voltage.

12. The device as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the transfer function value is generated based on a ratio of the input voltage to the output voltage when the input voltage and the output voltage being greater than the noise level.

13. The device as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the ODC and the ODR of the IC are measured by a two-port shunt thru method.

14. The device as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the transfer function value is any one of a first transfer function value, a second transfer function value and a third transfer function value, the first transfer function value is defined as a transfer function value based on the S-parameter information using a reflection coefficient between a source and a load, the second transfer function value is defined as a transfer function value based on the time domain, and the third transfer function value is defined as any one of the second transfer function value and 1 according to a preset condition.

15. The device as claimed in claim 14 ,
wherein the preset condition includes:
a first condition in which the input voltage is compared with the output voltage, and
a second condition in which a preset probe noise level is compared with the input voltage or the output voltage, and

wherein the preset probe noise level is a noise generated in a process of measuring the measured voltage in the node using a probe.

16. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as the second transfer function value when the input voltage is greater than the output voltage and the preset probe noise level.

17. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as 1 when the input voltage is greater than the output voltage, and is equal to or smaller than the preset probe noise level.

18. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as the second transfer function value when the input voltage is equal to or smaller than the output voltage, and is greater than the preset probe noise level.

19. The device as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the third transfer function value is defined as 1 when the input voltage is equal to or smaller than the output voltage and the preset probe noise level.

20. The device as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the extracted IC current is used to generate a database.

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lim Sang-Ho
• Lee Sang-Ho
• Ko Chea-Ok
• Shim Jong-Wan
• Cheon Jeong-Nam

Classifications

• G01R19/0092 Primary

  Measuring current only · CPC title

• G01R19/08

  Measuring current density · CPC title

• G01R1/067 Primary

  Measuring probes · CPC title