Post-silicon timing diagnosis made simple using formal technology

With the increasing demand for microprocessor core operating frequencies, debugging post silicon synchronization (or speed) failures is a critical time consuming post silicon debug activity. Inability to complete the isolation of all possible speed failures on time, forces companies to go to market with products that run at a lower frequency than their upper frequency limits. This might cause revenue losses or lead to loss of market segment shares. Laser-Assisted Device Alternation (LADA) machines are the main vehicle for debugging post silicon speed failures at Intel. Operating such expensive machines consumes a substantial portion of the overall post silicon debug effort. Moreover, with the increasing complexity of manufacturing processes, these machines need to be renewed from one process generation to the next, which increases the product cost. This paper describes a novel method, based on formal technology, which brings a productivity breakthrough in isolating post-silicon speed failures. We demonstrate that in many cases optical probing using LADA can be fully replaced by our approach.