System and method for measuring a capacitance associated with an integrated circuit
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorsRobin C. Sarma, Xiaowei Deng, James David Gallia
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit is provided that includes coupling a measurement circuit to an integrated circuit. One or more transistors within the integrated circuit are initialized such that a steady-state associated with one or more of the transistors is achieved. A capacitance associated with the portion of the integrated circuit is then measured using the measurement circuit. The portion of the integrated circuit is selectively charged and discharged in response to a voltage potential being applied thereto such that a drain current is generated that serves as a basis for the capacitance measurement.
Claims20
A method for measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit comprising:
- coupling a measurement circuit to an integrated circuit;
- initializing one or more transistors within the integrated circuit such that a steady-state associated with one or more of the transistors is achieved;
- and
- measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of the integrated circuit using the measurement circuit, the portion of the integrated circuit being selectively charged and discharged in response to a voltage potential being applied thereto such that a drain current is generated that serves as a basis for the capacitance measurement.
An apparatus for measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit comprising:
- an integrated circuit that includes one or more transistors;
- and
- a measurement circuit coupled to the integrated circuit and operable to initialize one or more of the transistors within the integrated circuit such that a steady-state associated with one or more of the transistors is achieved, wherein the measurement circuit is used to measure a capacitance associated with a portion of the integrated circuit, the portion of the integrated circuit being selectively charged and discharged in response to a voltage potential being applied thereto such that a drain current is generated that serves as a basis for the capacitance measurement.
A system for measuring a capacitance associated with a portion of an integrated circuit comprising:
- a measurement circuit operable to initialize one or more transistors within an integrated circuit such that a steady-state associated with one or more of the transistors is achieved, wherein the measurement circuit is coupled to the integrated circuit which is selectively charged and discharged in response to a voltage potential being applied thereto such that a drain current is generated that serves as a basis for the capacitance measurement.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.