Integrated circuit burn-in methods and apparatus

A burn-in system for an integrated circuit (IC) comprising a thermal sense circuit, the burn-in system comprising:

• a fixture to electrically couple to the IC;
• a temperature-altering mechanism to alter the ambient temperature of the IC;
• and
• a data processing system coupled to the fixture, the data processing system executing a computer program, the computer program operating the burn-in system to characterize the IC and comprising the operations of:
• storing a temperature value for the IC;
• controlling the temperature-altering mechanism to thermally stress the IC;
• determining whether a temperature indication from the thermal sense circuit substantially matches the temperature value;
• if so, recording the temperature value;
• and
• if not, changing the temperature value to a new temperature value and determining whether the temperature indication matches the new temperature value.

A method of testing an integrated circuit (IC) comprising a plurality of electronic devices, one of which is to provide a temperature indication, the method comprising:

• storing a temperature value for the IC;
• thermally stressing the IC;
• the one electronic device providing a temperature indication;
• determining whether the temperature indication matches the temperature value;
• if so, recording the temperature value;
• and
• if not, changing the temperature value to a new temperature value and determining whether the temperature indication matches the new temperature value.

A method of testing a plurality of integrated circuits (ICs), each comprising a thermal sense circuit, the method comprising:

• storing a temperature value for each IC;
• thermally stressing the ICs;
• each thermal sense circuit providing a temperature indication for its respective IC;
• determining whether the temperature indication matches the temperature value;
• if so, recording the temperature value for the corresponding IC;
• and
• if not, changing the temperature value to a new temperature value and determining whether the temperature indication matches the new temperature value.

A method of testing a plurality of electronic components, each comprising a thermal sense circuit, the method comprising:

• storing a temperature value for each electronic component;
• thermally stressing the electronic components;
• each thermal sense circuit providing a temperature indication for its respective electronic component;
• determining whether the temperature indication matches the temperature value;
• if so, recording the temperature value for the corresponding electronic component;
• and
• if not, changing the temperature value to a new temperature value and determining whether the temperature indication matches the new temperature value.

A computer-readable medium containing computer instructions for instructing a processor to perform a method of binning a plurality of integrated circuits (ICs) each having a thermal sense circuit, the processor forming an element in a system comprising a temperature-altering mechanism to thermally stress the ICs and a comparison mechanism, wherein the instructions comprise:

• storing a temperature value for each IC;
• obtaining a temperature indication from the thermal sense circuit of each IC;
• for each IC not yet binned, comparing the stored temperature value with the temperature indication;
• and
• if the temperature indication substantially matches the stored temperature value, recording the temperature value;
• otherwise, changing the temperature value to a new temperature value and comparing the new temperature value with the temperature indication.