Unisys Unveils High-Speed, High-Power Chip Test and Burn-in System; Unisys Unigen Operations creates next-generation system - PowerSCAN - Product Development

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, July 19, 1999

PowerSCAN results from a combination of patented technologies developed separately by Unisys and Motay Electronics. Unisys acquired Motay early in 1999. The unit is now called Unisys Unigen Operations (UUO).

PowerSCAN will be used to support a previously announced $300 million, multi-year award for test and burn-in technology that Unisys Unigen Operations recently received from a leading semiconductor manufacturer. (See the release at http://www.unisys.com/AboutUnisys/PressReleases/1999/may/05206716.html for details.)

"The semiconductor industry is producing ever-more powerful generations of silicon, and it was clear to us that the industry was going to need a new generation of liquid-cooled burn-in technology to handle these faster and more power-hungry chips," said James Rhodes, vice president and general manager, Unisys Unigen Operations. "The technologies of the two companies have been joined to create one of the most powerful high-speed test and burn-in systems ever."

Semiconductor manufacturers need to find new ways to test and burn-in newly manufactured chips to identify those that might fail in customer installations. If a semiconductor component is going to fail, it will usually do so in the first few months. The test and burn-in technology sold by Unisys Unigen Operations accelerates the early life of a semiconductor component to induce failure in any faulty chips.

The result is a more reliable product for the end customer and fewer warranty service costs for the manufacturer.

New generations of silicon are now running so hot and so fast that traditional methods of silicon test and burn-in may actually induce failure even in good chips.

Unisys had developed a patented technology with a thermal control apparatus that provides cooling and heating capabilities by directly contacting either packaged or bare die semiconductor devices. This technology was developed for use in Unisys mainframe computer systems, where custom high-power semiconductors are abundant.

Unisys recognized that this technology would be useful to the general semiconductor industry, and the result is the new PowerSCAN system.

PowerSCAN leverages Motay-developed technology for test and burn-in hardware and software, capitalizing on expertise developed over 10 years.

The thermal portion of the PowerSCAN system features individual device power handling to 200 Watts, with as low as 0.20( C/Watt thermal impedance.

PowerSCAN features high-speed test signal generation and functional test data collection, at clock speeds to 150 MHz. The core test technology is IEEE 1149.1 (JTAG or Boundary Scan) based, and provides both unlimited deterministic data and algorithmic pattern generation for embedded memory testing.

The target semiconductor products are high-power microprocessors, but PowerSCAN may be utilized to test and burn-in almost any JTAG-compatible device. Unisys will be developing more products based on the PowerSCAN test electronics suite.

These products will begin to enter the market in early 2000.

The PowerSCAN system will be available to the general industry in the first quarter of 2000.

Other Unisys Test and Burn-in Products The Unigen Series 9000 Custom Cooler, introduced this year, utilizes the Unisys thermal cooling technology for cooling power-hungry semiconductor components and board assemblies. This is a custom product that is fitted to specific device cooling needs.

UUO also provides a line of standard test and burn-in systems, called the Unigen 2000 PRO line, including ScanPRO, MemPRO, MultiPRO, LogicPRO and LinearPRO. Other products include burn-in boards and custom environmental boards.

For more information, contact UUO at 480/783-5905 or 800/366-6829. Information can also be found at www.unisys.com/unigen.> Unisys is more than 33,000 employees helping customers in 100 countries apply information technology to solve their business problems.

Unisys solutions are based on a broad portfolio of global information services including electronic business, systems integration including custom and "repeatable" application solutions, outsourcing, Microsoft Windows NT services, network services, and multivendor maintenance and support, coupled with enterprise-class servers and associated middleware, software and storage.

Repeatable solutions are focused on key vertical markets including financial services, transportation, telecommunications, government, publishing, and other commercial markets. The company is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, in the Greater Philadelphia area. For more information on the company, access the Unisys home page on the World Wide Web at www.unisys.com.