Japan-based semiconductor testing equipment supplier Advantest is introducing new testing solutions for next-generation memory, NAND flash and high-end CMOS image sensors (CIS) as it looks to expand its presence in the system-level testing (SLT) market.

Advantest is launching a new Link Scale family of digital channel cards for its V93000 SoC testing platform, which enable software-based functional testing and USB/PCI Express (PCIe) scan testing. The new cards address testing challenges faced by its clients when these interfaces are running in full protocol mode.

Advantest noted that many of the complex SoC devices, CPU, GPU and APU on the current market incorporate high-speed digital interfaces such as USB or PCIe. By using these interfaces for fast transfer of functional and scan test content, the new Link Scale cards can increase test coverage and speed, and they can be fully integrated into the test head if the same form factor as other V93000 cards is used, said the company.

The new Link Scale cards also provide a customizable operating environment for host software, facilitating the exchange of test data in different environments, such as wafer sort, final test and SLT. As a result, the solution can help users establish known-good-die (KGD) strategies for chipsets in 2.5D/3D multi-die packages.

The cards, which are expected to become widely available in the first quarter of 2022, are compatible with any V93000 Smart Scale and EXA Scale systems, and they have been delivered to pilot customers for test program development.

In late 2021, Advantest also introduced its T5835 memory tester for current and next-generation DRAM core and high-speed NAND flash devices, and the product has been shipped to several of its key customers.

The company has also begun shipping the fourth generation of its high-speed image-processing engine (T2000 IP Engine 4) to detect defects in the data output from advanced CIS, and the new test solution is expected to play a key role in the company's future expansion.

As semiconductors are being upgraded to have higher performance and reliability and lower power consumption, advanced testing for logic IC and memory IC is becoming increasingly important. Taiwan testing interface providers predict that the compound annual growth rate for the SLT market could reach 15% in the next few years.

By DIGITIMES