A new technical paper titled “X-Ray Device Alteration Using a Scanning X-Ray Microscope” was published by researchers at NVIDIA and Sigray.
“Near Infra-Red (NIR) techniques such as Laser Voltage Probing/Imaging (LVP/I), Dynamic Laser Stimulation (DLS), and Photon Emission Microscopy (PEM) are indispensable for Electrical Fault Isolation/Electrical Failure Analysis (EFI/EFA) of silicon Integrated Circuit (IC) devices. However, upcoming IC architectures based on Buried Power Rails (BPR) with Backside Power Delivery (BPD) networks will greatly reduce the usefulness of these techniques due to the presence of NIR-opaque layers that block access to the transistor active layer. Alternative techniques capable of penetrating these opaque layers are therefore of great interest. Recent developments in intense, focused X-ray microbeams for micro X-Ray Fluorescence (μXRF) microscopy open the possibility to using X-rays for targeted and intentional device alteration,” states the paper.
Find the technical paper here. Published October 2022.
William Lo, Puneet Gupta, Rakshith Venkatesh, Rudolf Schlangen, Howard Marks, Bruce Cory, Frances Su, Benjamin Stripe, Sylvia Lewis, Wenbing Yun; October 30–November 3, 2022. “X-Ray Device Alteration Using a Scanning X-Ray Microscope.” Proceedings of the ISTFA 2022. ISTFA 2022: Conference Proceedings from the 48th International Symposium for Testing and Failure Analysis. Pasadena, California, USA. (pp. pp. 153-162). ASM. https://doi.org/10.31399/asm.cp.istfa2022p0153.
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- Source: https://semiengineering.com/x-ray-device-alteration-xda-of-flip-chip-packaged-finfet-devices/