Electronic fingerprinting of semiconductor integrated circuits
AssigneeAgere Systems Inc.
InventorsPaul Arthur Layman, Samir Chaudhry, James Gary Norman, J. Ross Thomson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of identifying an integrated circuit device based on the initial state of certain memory cells within a memory array of the integrated circuit device. For many cells in the memory array the initial state is relatively consistent at each power-up, due to mismatches between the transistors that form each memory cell. Thus these consistent initial states provide a signature of the memory array and the integrated circuit device.
Claims13
A method for identifying an integrated circuit device including memory cells therewith, comprising:
- (a) applying power to the memory cells;
- (b) determining the initial state of the memory cells;
- (c) repeating the steps (a) and (b) until a plurality of the memory cells are determined to exhibit an initial state that is relatively consistent each time the step (a) is executed;
- and
- (d) associating the initial state of the plurality of memory cells with the integrated circuit device.
A method for manufacturing semiconductor devices, comprising:
- (a) providing a semiconductor substrate;
- (b) performing semiconductor fabrication processes on the semiconductor substrate to form semiconductor devices thereon, wherein the semiconductor substrate comprises a plurality of semiconductor die, and wherein each die comprises a plurality of semiconductor devices, and wherein certain of the die include memory cells;
- (c) applying power to the memory cells of each die comprising memory cells;
- (d) determining the initial state of the memory cells;
- (e) repeating the steps (c) and (d) until a plurality of the memory cells on a die are determined to exhibit an initial state that is relatively consistent each time the step (c) is executed;
- (f) associating the initial state of the plurality of memory cells with the die on which the memory cells are located;
- (g) singulating the semiconductor substrate into individual die;
- and
- (h) maintaining the association after the die are singulated.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.