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Keithley Instruments has introduced a variety of new enhancements to its Model 4200-SCS Semiconductor Characterization System. The Keithley Test Environment Interactive (KTEI) V8.2 upgrade includes new non-volatile memory (NVM) test libraries and sample projects for a variety of emerging memory technologies. The upgrade also supports making very low frequency capacitance-voltage measurements, which are useful for characterizing device technologies such as polymer electronics, organic LEDs (OLEDs), and OLED-based displays.
In addition, the KTEI V8.2 supports Model 4200-SCS system configurations with more ultra-fast current-voltage test modules than any competitive solution, so users can test even more devices in parallel, increasing test throughput and reducing time to market.
The new NVM test libraries included in KTEI V8.2 expand the system’s capabilities for testing all types of non-volatile memory devices, including flash, phase change memory (PRAM and PC-RAM), resistive memory (RRAM or ReRAM), and magnetoresistive (MRAM) memory devices. KTEI V8.2 provides a common set of test libraries for testing the various NVM technologies while incorporating the measurement hardware requirements associated with each.
The test libraries are designed to build on the capabilities provided in two of the newest hardware options for the Model 4200-SCS, the Model 4225-PMU Ultra-Fast I-V Module, and the Model 4225-RPM Remote Amplifier/Switch Module. Together, these new modules allow precise sourcing of high speed pulses, as well as accurate measurements of the transient signals produced during testing.
Semiconductor R&D typically requires a combination of quasistatic (ramp rate) and high frequency techniques for measuring the capacitance of device structures. However, when applied to devices with too much current flow or leakage, quasistatic C-V has some limitations; for example, parallel resistance cannot be extracted effectively and the results can be quite noisy. A variety of device technologies now require AC-based capacitance characterization at very low frequencies—much lower than the minimum frequency of multi-frequency C-V meters or LCRs.
Measuring small capacitances at low frequencies translates to extremely high impedance values, which AC-based measurement instruments often cannot characterise accurately. KTEI V8.2 includes a new patent-pending technique for making very low frequency capacitance-voltage (VLF C-V) measurements with the system’s DC SMUs and low current remote pre-amplifier that allows measuring device capacitance and resistance at frequencies from 10Hz down to 10mHz. This new technique complements the optional Model 4210-CVU capacitance meter’s existing high frequency (1kHz to 10MHz) capabilities.
The Model 4200-SCS system can now support up to six Model 4225-PMU modules in its nine-slot chassis. Each module provides two channels of voltage pulse sourcing (with pulse widths ranging from 60 nanoseconds to DC) and simultaneous current and voltage measurement at acquisition rates of up to 200 megasamples/second (MS/s), so it’s now possible to configure a system with up to 12 simultaneous ultra-fast I-V channels.
By boosting the maximum number of Model 4225-PMU modules the Model 4200-SCS can support, KTEI V8.2 expands the system’s ability to characterise multiple devices quickly by testing them in parallel, which is increasingly important as new devices move from the R&D lab toward production. By supporting higher test throughput, KTEI V8.2 helps shorten time to market and offers more effective process control.
